Rekindling a Flame
by Skywatch
Summary: Ranma and Akane have known each other for years and been married for three, but some things still don't come easy. A story of despair, hope, misunderstandings and a promise blindly given. Lime warning part 2. COMPLETE!
1. For Lack of Air

Ranma & company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare   
below is mine. C&C welcome. First fanfic and lime warnings (part two) apply.   
Thanks to Ana Wagner (who knows so much more about Ranma 1/2 than I do). Here   
goes ...   
  
Words in [ ] are thoughts  
  
REKINDLING A FLAME  
  
By: Skywatch  
  
PART ONE: FOR LACK OF AIR  
  
"Ranma, I can't do it." Akane's voice shook with the struggle to hold back her tears. She saw the disappointment that immediately filled his face, the bitterness.  
  
He turned his head to the side, refusing to look at her. "You promised." The words were slurred, hard to get out. His throat worked furiously, trying to form more. "I can't ... live ... like this."  
  
Crippled. He had a little feeling in his chest and shoulders and he could move his head and his neck, but beyond that there was nothing. For three weeks now he had spent every conscious second trying to force his body to feel again, his toes to wiggle, his fingers to twitch - anything! But this time he was facing an opponent as implacable and as illusive as the air he breathed. It was simply there, it was the condition his body was in, period.  
  
For the first time in his life, one of the best martial artists of his generation felt like he'd lost for good. Despair, on a scale that matched the first time he fell into Jusenkyou, gripped him. The difference was that this time it stayed. Day in and day out, and specially when there was nothing else to do but stare off into the long hours of the night, Ranma dwelt on what the rest of his life would be like and knew that he couldn't bear it.  
  
And for something so meaningless, because he had tried to brazen his way into skiing. After all, he'd done it before, hadn't he? He'd beaten Cologne on the snow - well, okay, admittedly that had been a really close thing, but he'd still won in the end, right?  
  
His fine sense of balance and quick reflexes would carry him through. They always had.  
  
"You sure you want this slope?" The kid with the tea-streaked hair brought the ski-lift to a stop. "We've, um, had a lot of snow and it's all banked. The other hill's probably safer, Miss, uh ...?"  
  
Akane smiled and Ranma bristled. He hadn't missed the appreciative looks the teenager had been sneaking at her since they'd gotten on the lift. "My wife and I'll do just fine," he stated gruffly.  
  
The kid seemed slightly crestfallen, mumbled something about coming back for them and left.  
  
"Ranma."  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"Maybe we should try another slope. This is too advanced. Even my sisters and I save this for last."  
  
Akane said a lot of other things but Ranma shrugged the arguments off. After all, although he would never admit it, a part of him was showing off for her and enjoying it.  
  
For awhile, his skills and balance got him through. They had him quickly on his feet and, after a lot of falling and flailing, moving on his skis, but something had gone wrong.  
  
One moment he was fine - the icy wind burned against his bare cheeks as he arrowed down - then somehow he moved wrong and he was pummeling uncontrollably down steep, slippery ice with no means to stop an increasingly perilous descent. His skis hit a half-buried rock that he couldn't avoid. He was launched into the air.  
  
His involuntary cry was half-surprise, half-defiance. It echoed back at him along the deserted slope, and then there was another sound, a deep rumble that raised the hairs on the back of his neck. [Avalanche!]  
  
"Ranma! Watch out!" He heard Akane's faint shout and imagined her speeding down on her skis after him. It was the last thing he wanted.  
  
[Stay back, ya stubborn -]  
  
It was a basic lesson of martial arts, learning how to fall. If you knew how, if your body could turn in precisely the right way at just the right moment depending on the particular situation, you could fall and not get hurt. Oh, the breath would rush out of your body and your muscles might ache for days, and, if it was really bad, you'd suffer a few fractures, but there wouldn't be any permanent damage. Anything less didn't really count to a guy who'd been training since he was old enough to walk. After all, he'd survived the Martial Arts Figure Skating contest, as well as numerous collisions with ground, walls, fists, mallets, spatulas, bonbori and countless other weapons.  
  
But if you couldn't ... Ranma fell into the raging tide of snow head first. The wave wrapped around him like a giant fist and dragged him inexorably in so many directions that he couldn't even tell which way he was facing anymore. Between the skis and the snow that rumbled all around him, he couldn't maneuver at all in the few precious seconds left.  
  
He didn't even see it - the jagged boulder that met his back at the speed of a rushing car. There was a snap and a crack, a tremendous but short-lived pain and then he was unconscious.  
  
It took him two days to wake up. He tried to smile at Akane's face looming anxiously over him. He noticed fleetingly that his wife looked exhausted. Her eyes were dark smudges in a pale, concerned face. He was dimly aware of other people hovering as he closed his eyes in sleep. The next time he woke, there was a series of stern-faced doctors and a barrage of tests. After days of prodding and consultation, most of them came to the same conclusion.  
  
In twenty seconds, more than twenty years' worth of martial arts were gone.  
  
"My fault."  
  
"Wh-what?"  
  
Akane covered her face with her hands. "It was my idea. Why did I even think of a skiing trip when you couldn't ski? Kami help me, I was so stupid!"  
  
[If you really felt that way, you'd help me!] Ranma pushed the thought forcefully away - he knew it wasn't fair - but he couldn't help the impatient snap that followed. "Don't be stupid. It's winter. Where else were we supposed to ... go on our anniversary? I was the one ... who insisted on trying that slope."  
  
Silence, so thick you could cut it with a knife, fell between them.  
  
Ranma sighed. "Doesn't matter ... whose fault. Just help me. You said you would."  
  
"Help you die." Akane struggled to keep her voice calm. "I promise I'd do anything, and this is what you ask me." She swallowed. "You made a promise to me, too. 'For better or for worse,' remember? We both took that gaikoku vow. You've never given up before, not even when Happosai made you as weak as a baby! You learned the Hiryuu Shoten Ha. What makes this so different?" she demanded fiercely.  
  
The youth on the bed closed his eyes. Talking was still difficult, but getting easier. "I was weak but I could walk, move my arms, run and jump ... learn a new technique. This time I'm paralyzed. The docs say ... for life." He opened his eyes and stared straight at her. "Akane, my entire life's martial arts! I can't remember a day without it. It's the only thing I know, the one thing I'm good at. What else could I be without it?"  
  
"You'd still be my husband, the man I love." A becoming red blush suffused the young woman's cheeks. Although they'd progressed greatly since the days when they'd rather die than show any kind of affection, it still wasn't easy for either of them to express their  
  
feelings frankly. "I don't want to lose you."  
  
She grasped his hand, and a small part of him died because he couldn't feel it. "Ranma, if - if the situation were reversed. I mean, if the accident had happened to me, would you do what you're asking me to do?"  
  
The question and the tone of her voice disarmed him. He tried to picture it, tried to imagine any situation where he would voluntarily lay a hand on her, actually try to kill her. He couldn't, even if she asked, but he didn't want to tell her that. "I don't know," he half-lied. [Somehow I'll do it myself. Even without her help I'll find a way. It's the last thing I can do as a ... as a man.]  
  
Maybe she sensed his dark thoughts, or maybe the answer just wasn't what she expected, but for awhile Akane was speechless.  
  
When she finally spoke, her voice was steady. Ranma knew what that meant now - she'd made up her mind. "Alright, you win." She held up a hand. "But I ask one thing first. I've never really asked you anything for myself, have I?"  
  
He opened his mouth automatically, all set to contradict her, but then he realized it was mostly true. "Ask," he said hoarsely.  
  
"No, you have to promise first. Promise blindly, like I did." A hint of anger colored her tone, because it had been a dirty trick, turning something that had been given with all her heart into this.  
  
His pause lasted only for a second. "Hai."  
  
"Give me a year."  
  
His eyes widened in protest.  
  
"One year to see if there's anything we can do to cure you. Doctors aren't always right, and there's at least one of them who thinks you have a chance! You're not an ordinary person, Saotome Ranma. You've been honed by years of training. Your rate of recovery is pretty astounding," she reminded him.  
  
"So this is what I propose. If by the end of the year you're not back to your old self and you still want to do this, then I'll help. If you can manage it, I'll be your second. If not, I'll do it myself!" she bit out savagely. [And then I'll probably follow you because how could I possibly live with myself afterwards?] "I'll put my oath in writing and I'll have it witnessed, if that's what you want." Her fierce determination shone in an aura that coalesced around her body.  
  
Ranma stared long and hard at his wife. Did she know, he wondered, how magnificent he found her when she was like this? And he did owe her for the trick. He had sensed that it would hurt her like anything but he'd still done it. "Not ... necessary. Hai," he agreed, "a year."  
  
=================  
  
The first thing Akane did as soon as Ranma was out of the hospital was to consult Dr. Tofu. He'd been the one of the few who had held out any hope. Most of the doctors at the hospital were skeptical. They were specialists backed by numerous degrees and decades of experience. Of course they assumed they knew better.  
  
But Dr. Tofu had an edge: he had been around the Tendos since Kasumi was in high school and Akane was a little girl. He'd treated Ranma and the others for an astounding number of injuries over the last nine years. And he had a working familiarity with Ranma's curse of turning into a girl whenever he was splashed with cold water. Ironically, the doctor thought that it was the curse, together with Ranma's extraordinary healing abilities, which might save him.  
  
First, he asked Ranma to participate in a carefully-monitored experiment. When he saw the results, he couldn't help the smile that broke across his face. His theory was right!  
  
Dr. Tofu arranged a series of x-ray plates, diagrams and test results along the wall of his clinic. "You see this and this, Akane? Then we have this spike here. It's all very promising," he mumbled, pointing at more figures and droning on in technical jargon.  
  
Finally, the girl couldn't stand it anymore. "Could you please explain more simply? I don't understand," she admitted.  
  
"Oh I'm sorry, I got carried away." His eyes twinkled behind his glasses, but otherwise his expression was serious. "I've been studying Jusenkyou curses since you and Ranma came to me with the cat's tongue problem. One thing has always struck me as extraordinary. The transformation is so drastic. Shampoo turns into a kitten, Mousse into a duck ... and well, there was the day we found out about Ryouga and P-chan." Dr. Tofu winced at the memory. It had been one of his busiest days. "Ranma turns into a short red-haired girl."  
  
He fidgeted with his glasses. "Their ENTIRE bodies transform, Akane, inside and out! Features, shapes, mass, nerve and bone configurations - everything! It's amazing when you think about it."  
  
Akane bit her lip impatiently, but motioned for him to continue.  
  
"When Ranma changes - and these tests prove it - the curse reforms his body to conform as closely as possible to the drowned girl's body. In the process it's been regenerating the damaged nerves in his body, his spine, numerous bones. These changes cross over to his male body when he's doused with hot water. So," Dr. Tofu concluded, "if Ranma triggers his curse regularly, oh once a day at least, and undertakes a strenuous regimen of physical therapy, I'm confident he'll be able to walk again."  
  
"Just ... walk?" Akane was both elated and disappointed. Walking was wonderful, but not enough to fulfill the terms of her oath.  
  
Dr. Tofu was somewhat surprised at her lack of enthusiasm. "I can't promise anymore than that. It's possible that Ranma will regain his old abilities in time." He sounded doubtful, though. "We'll just have to try our best, ne?"  
  
=============  
  
It took Ranma six months to take his first step. By that time, Akane was a mass of frazzled nerves. She had a sinking feeling they weren't going to make it to the deadline. At his current rate of progress, he would only be able to walk normally by that time, and that's if they were lucky. Still, she was determined to try.  
  
It was so hard! It had been nine years since they had met, three years since she had married him. They had come to know each other like the backs of their hands, or at least that's what they thought. But this lifeless, spiritless Ranma was almost a stranger to Akane.  
  
People once said that everything in the world was made up of four elements - fire, water, earth and air. To Akane, Ranma was fire personified. His grace and fluidity in martial arts might've been more suited to air, but the spirit that blazed in him, the bravado and the confidence, his determination to survive, to always overcome - these things defined Ranma to Akane more than any move or technique. His passion for living and winning was a beacon that drew her.  
  
But twenty-one days and nights strapped to a bed, without being able to do more than breathe, talk and move his head had succeeded where hundreds of fights to the death, demons, curses and seventy-seven kinds of martial arts rivals had failed. The flame was now a mere glimmer in a darkness that threatened to swamp everything.  
  
[He's going to hold me to my promise.] She realized it in the first month out of the hospital. She'd tried to be cheerful and encouraging, but it hadn't worked. He'd gone into the physical therapy program of the hospital assisted by Dr. Tofu, but his acts were purely mechanical, merely his way of fulfilling his part of the bargain. Sometimes he simply lay there, staring off into space while the therapists manipulated his legs and arms. It made Akane want to scream.  
  
There was none of that spark, none of that light of determination in his eyes that spoke of Ranma's fierce love of life and the Art. He truly believed that the Art had been taken away from him, and that nothing could bring it back. A part of him didn't even want to try.  
  
He HAD to want to try. In desperation, she turned to Genma, Nodoka, Ukyou and even Ryouga, everyone who had known Ranma since he was a child. She had to find a way to bring the old Ranma back.  
  
When she was through, she could only shake her head at the irony. There was one way that could conceivably work in time. She had to make this into a challenge Ranma could not back down from, something his pride would not allow him to fail in; in short, she had to goad him into it. Because of his upbringing, a part of Ranma would always respond more forcefully to rough handling. Genma had certainly never been gentle with him.  
  
Gradually, she regressed to her old behavior. It wasn't like they didn't fight anymore, but over the years their insults had lost a lot of sting. It was more like banter now, although Akane could still get riled up when Ranma inevitably stuck his foot in his mouth. But back then, specially in the early days when she and Ranma were foisted on each other out of nowhere, it had been ... well, neither of them had given the other much of a break and they had meant at least half of their stock-in-trade insults.   
  
So now, without any trace of affection, Akane began to insult Ranma daily, berated him for being such a baby when he pleaded exhaustion during therapy. A part of her cringed every time an uncomprehending hurt expression flickered across his eyes. There were results, though. Almost three months after the accident, Ranma regained some feeling in his arms and hands. When he tried really hard, he could twitch his fingers.  
  
Akane wished that she hadn't gotten good at reading Ranma, because she knew exactly what he was thinking when he looked bleakly at the tiny movement. 'If I keep this up,' she could almost hear him say, 'I can use the tanto myself.'  
  
The others, who didn't know of her plan nor of her pain, showed their disapproval in many ways. She explained to Ranma's parents and to her father, but the others she couldn't risk. It had to be as real as possible for it to work. It surprised her that, of all people, Genma understood.  
  
She began to hate herself with every passing day. You don't pick on people who're weaker than you - that had been Akane's mantra since she was a child beginning a lifetime of training in the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. What she was doing now was far worse than that.  
  
Later, she dragged Ryouga into it, and then Ukyou.  
  
She called in Ryouga's old debt to her over P-chan, and used it to make him "resurrect" his old feud with Ranma. She did it thinking that Ryouga would provide the perfect challenge for Ranma.  
  
Ryouga wondered if he should explain exactly how large a part Akane had played in that feud. She thought only that there had been a little jealousy. But to explain would mean that he would have to tell her about his old feelings and even now he shied away from that.  
  
So Ryouga knew exactly what buttons to push with his old rival. In a few choice words, Ryouga insinuated that Ranma, being of no more use to the Anything Goes School, had lost his right to Akane. Perhaps he should give her a divorce so she could find happiness with someone else ... someone who could actually walk, for instance?  
  
The words were vile and Ryouga nearly lost it as he came out of the dojo. He had left Ranma collapsed on the floor after attempting to lever himself out of his wheelchair to lunge at Ryouga.  
  
Later, when the hour was late enough for Ranma to be asleep, the directionally-challenged youth circled back and, miracle of miracles, actually found Akane. She was sitting and staring sightlessly at the koi pond. He crouched down beside her. "I don't think -"  
  
"You have to. You owe me," she cut in, rather coldly because she was scared that he would back out of the arrangement. If she were Nabiki, she would've left it at that, but this was Akane and she'd been holding everything in for way too long. Before she knew it, tears were streaming down her cheeks. "Don't you see, Ryouga? It worked. That's the first time Ranma's tried to get out of his chair on his own! Please, I - I can't do this by myself!" [If I had time, maybe, but I don't!] The thought made her cry harder.  
  
"Oh Akane." Ryouga took her into his arms. He loved someone else now, but Akane was his first love and she would always be dear to him. He tried to comfort her as a friend, running a soothing hand over her hair while she sobbed into his shoulder.  
  
Unfortunately, Ukyou didn't see it that way as she came bounding over the walls, intent on berating her former rival for her poor treatment of Ranchan. "Ryouga! Akane!" she cried out, unstrapping her giant spatula. "Traitors!"  
  
The pair leapt away from the flashing edge. "Ukyou, no! It's not what you think!" Ryouga quickly circled to the left and attempted to draw the enraged woman's attention.  
  
It worked. "I know what I saw! Ranchan's lost everything and the two of you - how could you?!" Ukyou launched a series of moves that brought the spatula perilously closer to his head. For a few seconds, she forgot all about the other girl.  
  
But not for long.  
  
"Enough." A leg sweep knocked Ukyou inelegantly to the ground.  
  
Akane stood over her. She made no move as the other girl leapt back to her feet, brandishing the razor-edged weapon again. "Ukyou, if you really believe that I can betray Ranma like that then ... do what you have to."  
  
"Akane!" Ryouga protested.  
  
"I know I haven't been treating him well, so you have reason. But Ryouga deserves better. He's always been a good friend when my hus- when Ranma needed him the most." A part of Akane glanced longingly at the cold hard edge of the okinomiyaki chef's spatula, thinking that it would put her out of her misery, wanting the oblivion that Ukyou could give her. Let somebody else take over. This was too hard, and Ranma was going to hate her by the end of it. She wondered if she'd be able to stand that.  
  
But she wasn't sure anybody else could pull it off, and anyway it was her responsibility, because however else anybody tried to convince her otherwise, it had been her idea to ski, and she had let him try that dangerous slope. No matter that stopping Ranma from doing something he wanted was like trying to halt a charging bull, she should've found a way. So she squared her shoulders, and decided not to let Ukyou kill her.  
  
"Ukyou, I need your help." Then she turned slightly and bowed apologetically in the youth's direction. "Ryouga, honto ni gomen. I'm sorry I tried to force you to help me. I should've known better, and I think I owe both of you an explanation. Can we sit down?"  
  
In a halting, weary voice, Akane told them everything. How there was a slight chance for Ranma to recover, but also how for the first time in his life, Ranma considered himself beaten. How desultory and reluctant his participation in his therapy was and how he refused to consider more surgery ("The one they did on me didn't help, and we don't have that kind of money"). She told them about the endless consultations with doctors, therapists, chiropractors and psychiatrists, and how they had all said the same thing - it was improbable, maybe impossible, but if Ranma was to walk again he would have to want it, and want it badly.  
  
Finally, in a voice that shook a little, she told them about the vow he had made her take, the promise she had blindly given, and what he expected of her at the end of the year.  
  
Ryouga and Ukyou were both pale by the end of her story. They looked at each other with wide eyes, seeing their shock reflected in the other's face. Ranma was considering seppuku, and he had asked - no, had actually made Akane take an oath to help him?!  
  
"I can't believe ... Ranchan's not - he just doesn't give up like that!"  
  
"Still," Ryouga mused, "imagine being paralyzed like that. It would be a horrible experience for anybody, but for us - ! Ranma, you, me, Akane, the others, we've all made martial arts our lives. To suddenly have it taken away like that, by some freak accident when we're in our prime, that's just not right." The idea was more than disturbing, Ryouga realized. It ... offended him.  
  
"Can you imagine it?" he asked no one in particular. "One minute you're the best at what you do, you're as close to invincible as a person can be. The next you're totally defenseless, with absolutely no control over your body. Years of training mean nothing. It's like," his gaze turned inward, the situation was eerily familiar to him, " - like being stuck as a pig permanently. If my curse locked, and I'd have no choice but to be P-chan forever, I'd rather die, too."  
  
"Ryouga!" Now it was Akane's turn to be shocked. She had no idea he felt that strongly about his curse. "Please, no more talk about dying."  
  
Ukyou regarded Akane with sympathy. Impulsively, she laid a hand on the other girl's arm. "I'm sorry for thinking ... um, well. This must be hard on you."  
  
"Akane?" Ryouga asked softly. "Are you okay?"  
  
"Me? Oh, you shouldn't be worried about me, I'm fine!"  
  
But these two, knowing her for almost as long as Ranma had, weren't fooled by Akane's cheery imitation and her tight smile.  
  
Eventually, she relented. "I remember when Ranma had really bad dreams, mostly about Jusenkyou and his curse. Well, I know what that feels like now. I have my own recurring nightmare, although I thank the kami it doesn't visit me every night."  
  
She would've left it there, but Ukyou urged her on. "I think you'll feel better if you tell us, kiddo."  
  
Akane looked away. The water of the koi pond, so dark and inscrutable, seemed to mesmerize her. "We're in the dojo and I stand behind and to the right of Ranma. I've helped him into formal seiza, tying his legs and tucking his robes so he stays that way. He's finished reading a haiku and he's put it aside. He's well enough to grasp the tanto in his hand now, but his grip is not as steady as it should be. It appears that we ... we've discussed this and how everything should to be done so there's no chance of dishonor. As soon as the tanto enters the place between his ribs I raise the katana and --" she broke off. "When I want to give up, specially when I see how much what I do or say hurts him, I think about that. It helps."  
  
Her companions were speechless. Then Ukyou was hugging her, and Ryouga's massive hand was on her shoulder. "We swear we'll help in whatever way we can."  
  
So she told them about the plan.  
  
"Alright, Ryouga's role is pretty clear," the okinomiyaki chef said at the end. "Ranma honey's always been a sucker for jealousy [Where Akane's concerned, anyway], and the challenge thing is good. But what do I do?"  
  
"You back up our stories, of course. Plus, you're the supportive friend who's sympathetic and encouraging. He needs that, too."  
  
For some reason, the idea made Ukyou distinctly uncomfortable. "You know, you could do that, be the encouraging one. I can be the person who heckles him to death," she volunteered lightly.  
  
Akane actually smiled at her. "No, it works better when it's me. It's more believable, for one thing. You've never really had an argument with Ranma. Beating him up after he made you tell him you loved him doesn't count," she grinned, remembering.  
  
[Hey, how did she know about that? Oh to heck with it, I'll just come out and say it.] "Akane, this is dangerous. Ranchan might, well, he might believe you really hate him and, um, he might think ..." she trailed off. [Coward.]  
  
"It's alright, Ukyou." The other girl pretended not to understand. "It won't be effective otherwise. Look, I'd like to thank the two of you for letting me unburden myself, but it's been a really long day..." Ryouga and Ukyou took the hint and quickly departed, leaving her to wander back into the house.  
  
Akane let out a long, deep breath. [I know what I'm doing, but can I take the consequences? I've really set myself up. How long will it be before Ranma gets tired of my cruelty and turns to his Ucchan for comfort? He'd see how much easier his life would be with her instead of with me. Oh God, what if this works, but in the end I lose him anyway?]  
  
She clenched her fists. [NO! I can't think about this now! Remember the dream. I'd rather lose him to Ukyou than have to ...] Shuddering, Akane prepared herself for another restless night.  
  
==================  
  
"I'm really glad you stopped by, Ucchan," Ranma said.  
  
"Oh, you know how it is. With the school kids off on their summer break, there's really not a lot to do at the restaurant." Ukyou leaned back. "'Sides, it's been awhile since you've had one of my okinomiyakis."  
  
Akane came in, bearing a tray of cold drinks. One glass had a straw in it, for Ranma. "Ukyou, I'm sorry, but I've got errands to run. Would you mind helping Ranma?"  
  
The youth flushed in embarrassment. "I don't need help," he muttered.  
  
"Oh I see, you can just make the glass levitate towards you, is that it? Must be some new technique of yours I haven't seen yet."  
  
"Akane!" Inspite of herself, Ukyou was taken aback. "I don't mind ... if you don't, Ranchan?" she asked softly.  
  
Ranma's glare slowly faded as his eyes shifted from his wife to his friend. "Uh, no, I guess not."  
  
"Well, that settles it, then. I'll be back in an hour." Akane brushed off her skirt and walked towards the door. She paused right before exiting, turning briefly to glance with abject apology at Ranma's back.  
  
Ukyou met her eyes for an instant. It was all she could do not to flinch at the sorrow that was there. "Let me tell you about the other day." She launched into a funny anecdote that involved Konatsu and a rather drunk young customer. "... when he finally saw that he was making all these cute little passes at another guy -!"  
  
She went on for quite awhile, telling him about some of the funnier episodes which he'd missed out on in the last couple of months.  
  
Ranma began to laugh at her stories. Some of the tension slowly left his face. "Oh man, that's hilarious! Daisuke and Hiroshi - it's been years and they're still the same - ha, ha!" He choked a bit. "Uh, Ukyou, I think I better have that drink before I pass out."  
  
She did, holding up the glass to him while he craned his neck, sipping slowly through the straw. Her heart began to beat a little faster as she did it, because the scene was so domestic, so reminiscent with possibilities. [Grab a hold of yourself, Kuonji, he's still Akane's. And for once in my life, I really don't envy the situation she's in.]  
  
"Ucchan." Ranma drew away from the drink. Suddenly, he seemed dead serious. "I haveta ask you something. Please, it's important."  
  
[Uh-oh, Ranchan's being polite. I don't like the sound of this.]  
  
"Were you here two nights ago?"  
  
[Kuso! Does he know? Maybe not, have to be careful.] "Why would you think that, Ranchan?" she asked, keeping her tone casual.  
  
"I heard ya, or at least I think it was you. I heard somebody shout Ryouga and Akane's name, and what sounded like fighting. I knew Ryouga was around." Ranma frowned. "I wanted to go and see what was happening but 'course I couldn't. Whoever it was called them 'traitors.'"  
  
Ukyou tried to think fast. She didn't want to lie to him but she had to convince Ranma that Ryouga's renewed affections for Akane were serious. "It was silly of me, really. It was all a misunderstanding. Akane was talking to Ryouga and he was - comforting her, I suppose. Only ... "  
  
"Only?" he prompted.  
  
"Well, she was telling him goodbye or something but when she turned away to walk back into the house, he grabbed her hand. It looked like she was pulling away but he wasn't letting go. Then I blundered in." She crossed her fingers behind her back, hoping he wouldn't ask her what she was doing there in the first place.  
  
She needn't have worried. "He GRABBED her?!" Ranma's eyes were blazing, and for the first time in months, a dim battle aura began to form around him.  
  
[Nani?! Maybe that was a little too effective. Waitaminit, is he - he is! His hands are gripping the armrests of his wheelchair and he doesn't even realize it.] "Ranchan, calm down! He didn't grab her, he only took her hand. I told you it was a misunderstanding. He just wanted to say a few more things. Akane believed him."  
  
Eventually, Ranma quieted down. Nothing unusual happened for the rest of the visit, but when Akane came home she was disturbed by the unusual glint in his eyes.  
  
A month of intensive therapy later, Ranma regained the partial use of his arms, although he still had some trouble with his hands and fingers. Two months after that, with his hands tightly grasping the waist-high parallel bars for support, he took his first step.  
  
It wasn't much of a step - he'd been using mainly the regained strength in his arms to propel himself along. He'd told Akane as much when she came bounding up to him, a rare smile on her face. The smile quickly died, of course, and she was all business again, arranging his next visit with the therapist.  
  
He clenched his fists as he sat in his wheelchair, glancing at his wife as she spoke with the hospital staff. [She deserves better than me, dammit! She should have a whole man by her side.] He grinned bitterly, remembering when that used to mean that she deserved someone who didn't change genders with every passing bucket of water. Now changing into a girl was the least of his worries.  
  
He sneaked another look at Akane. Once more, he was at a point when he couldn't figure her out. She was so abrasive these days, but at the same time she worked hard, taking over all the classes at the dojo while making sure he had the best treatment. He had tried to tell her it was useless, that he was never going to be the gravity-defying Ranma again, but she wouldn't listen. [Stubborn tomboy.]  
  
He seriously considered stepping aside so that another guy could have a fair chance at Akane. [But from what Ucchan said, it's not Ryouga she wants. If he tries to force her in any way - hell, I'm still her husband, it's my job to protect her.]  
  
Ranma experimentally opened his hands, and drew them about six inches apart. He shut his eyes tightly, concentrating hard until he felt the faintest traces of energy coursing between his palms. [If Ryouga bothers Akane again, I'll be ready.]  
  
============  
  
Thanks for the encouraging reviews! I tweaked this chapter, mainly to stress   
that Ranma's "skiing accident" involved an avalanche. The guy is pretty   
invulnerable, and it was hard to find a believable excuse for him to be   
crippled. Didn't realize it wasn't clear, but hopefully this'll fix that (thanks   
for pointing it out, Cat).  
  
For those who think Ranma & Akane are acting OOC, please remember that this is   
years into the future. Unfortunately, they still don't communicate very well.   
Also, Akane's recurring dream about Ranma's seppuku is just that - it's not   
meant to be an accurate depiction of ritual suicide.  
  
Rough translation of some Japanese words used in this fic:  
  
Baka = fool, idiot and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma  
  
Gomen = sorry  
  
Kaishoku = the "second" in traditional seppuku. His/her job was to cut off the   
samurai's head before the latter "dishonored" himself by showing too much pain  
  
Kami = gods/spirits  
  
Kimi = you (may be used by a husband/boyfriend to his wife/girlfriend). Ex. "kimi no kawaii"  
  
Kuso = a swear word, roughly equivalent to "shit"  
  
"Ittai koko wa doko da?!" = "Where on earth am I now?!" Ryouga's cry when he's   
lost and frustrated about it.  
  
Musha-shugyo = training journey  
  
Shimatta = "Damn it!"  
  
Shoji = sliding doors, like the ones at the Tendo dojo 


	2. Kindling

Ranma & company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare   
below is mine. First fanfic and lime warnings apply. C&C welcome. Thanks to Ana   
Wagner (who knows so much more about Ranma ½ than I do) for some very helpful   
comments. Here goes ...  
  
Words in [ ] are thoughts  
  
REKINDLING A FLAME  
by: Skywatch

PART TWO: KINDLING  
  
"Shi shi hokoudan!"  
  
"What the - aaaahhh!" Ryouga only had one brief moment of  
confusion before he was sent flying by the force of the chi blast. It  
hit him squarely. Since no one else wielded the depression blast, he'd never devised a proper defense against it.  
  
Akane whirled around to stare at her husband, too stunned to do  
anything about Ryouga.  
  
Ranma was breathing hard, his hands still held up, but the  
faintest of self-satisfied grins hovered around his lips. After all  
this time, he had finally mastered the shi shi hokoudan. "That'll teach  
ya." [Putting your hands on her like that.] He didn't realize he'd said  
it aloud until his wife glared at him.  
  
"Putting his hands - Ranma no baka! Ryouga and I were just  
sparring! I fell for one of his feints and he was helping me up." It  
was absolutely true. It had been months since anybody had given Akane a  
decent workout, and it had been such a relief, immersing herself  
completely in the Art for a change.  
  
"Oh yeah? Guess that means ya were losing, as usual," he shot  
back. Akane's naiveté infuriated him. He'd been attracted by the  
sounds coming from the dojo and had made his way there, swinging hard on  
his crutches. He arrived just in time to see Ryouga kneeling over a  
prone Akane, one hand on her arm and another on her shoulder. To Ranma,  
it had looked like his rival had been about ready to join her on the  
floor.  
  
Akane picked up a towel and wiped her face. "I suppose you  
could do better."  
  
"Not anymore, obviously," Ranma muttered.  
  
The young woman abruptly dropped the towel. "Stop that!" she  
demanded, walking towards him. "That's all I ever hear from you!"  
  
"Well excuse me for being a cripple - wha?! What're ya doing?!"  
Ranma yelped as she grabbed him roughly by his arms. His crutches  
clattered to the floor.  
  
Akane's mouth twisted in a malicious parody of a grin. "Since  
you knocked the only decent sparring partner I've had in months out of  
the room, you can replace him."  
  
"What the hell are you talking about? You know I can't!" he  
protested.  
  
He'd almost forgotten how strong she was, because she had been  
so gentle around him since the accident. Now she was forcefully  
reminding him, effortlessly lifting and propelling his body until his  
back was pressed against a wall. "All I know is that poor Ryouga's  
unconscious or lost or both, and you did it, Ranma. So don't tell me  
what you can't do."  
  
Akane mentally crossed her fingers, hoping Ryouga was okay, and  
that this would work. [A little more than five months to go.] Ranma  
could take some steps, after a fashion, and there were times when he  
could stay upright on his feet, though mostly on crutches and never for  
long. "You have two choices, Saotome. You can dodge, or you can stand  
there and pretend to be one of my practice dummies. They generally  
don't last long, though."  
  
"You've gotta be kidding - Hey!" Ranma jerked his head  
instinctively, barely in time to avoid a fist that smashed next to his  
cheek. He felt himself tottering and placed his hands on either side of  
his body, palms braced flat against the rough wood of the dojo wall for  
support. Using the additional leverage, he propelled himself a scant  
inch away from the next blow.  
  
Akane kept the attack up. She didn't give him any time to  
realize how careful she was being, how her punches were directed  
precisely toward those areas which he could avoid. The ones that she or  
he misjudged were pulled, enough to make a palpable hit against his body  
and no more.  
  
It was working well, until Ranma pulled a surprise move,  
bringing up one of his arms to actually block and sweep her blow aside.  
His arms had regained a portion of their former strength, if not all of  
their coordination. He'd realized, after awhile, that Akane hadn't  
taken that into account and decided instantly to take advantage of her  
oversight. It was successful, in that it prevented her punch from  
connecting.  
  
Unfortunately, his motion and the reverberation of Akane's blow  
on his forearm upset his precarious balance. Suddenly he was pitching  
forward.  
  
"Ranma!" With very little time to do much else, Akane moved  
towards him, wrapped one of her arms firmly around his waist and  
propelled their fall so that he would land on top of her instead of on  
the hard unyielding floor of the dojo.  
  
They both "oomphed" as they hit the wooden surface. The back of  
Akane's head thudded solidly against the floor, but not hard enough to  
damage anything. It hurt, though.  
  
"See? I told ya this was a stupid idea," Ranma grunted. "You  
okay?" His left hand reached up briefly to touch her hair.  
  
She nodded, breathing hard from the last-minute save. "Smarts a  
little, that's all."  
  
Ranma shook his head, but for the first time in ages he gave her  
a lopsided smile. He rolled his eyes theatrically. "You were supposed  
to catch me, tomboy, not fall with me."  
  
"Right." Akane closed her eyes briefly as the back of her head  
throbbed. "I'll remember that next time." [I'm going to have a huge  
lump on that spot tomorrow.]  
  
A second passed as they caught their breath.  
  
Suddenly Akane's eyes flew open, her expression startled.  
"R-Ranma?" She watched him uncertainly, not sure of what she thought  
she'd felt - and definitely not sure of what it meant.  
  
He was looking at her with such wonder and intensity that  
it took her breath away. His face was turning red, and it wasn't  
because of the fall. "Akane, I ... kimi ...," he whispered. "I can  
feel you."  
  
"What?" Then she realized what he meant, and matched him, blush  
for blush.  
  
"I can feel ... all of you." One of Ranma's hands wrapped  
around her left hip, pulling her closer, more firmly against him until  
there was no way she could doubt his response to her. "I never thought  
I would again." [The length of your body against mine - not like that  
other time.] He determinedly pushed that unwelcome memory from his  
mind, instead sliding his legs between hers, pressing against her,  
concentrating on his wife and the way her smooth skin yielded against  
the play of his searching fingers.  
  
It was like catching fire. After half a year, and one night's  
botched attempt, Akane had almost forgotten what Ranma's touch was like.  
A soft moan slipped from her as her husband's other hand began to move  
feverishly over her body, slipping into the folds of her gi and under  
her shirt, parting the one and lifting the other, baring her skin to him  
and to the cool air.  
  
She raised her head and met him in a long impassioned kiss, her  
hands scrambling deftly for the ties of his Chinese shirt. "Ranma." She  
breathed his name against his cheek, the brown column of his neck, the  
juncture between neck and shoulder, the hollow of his throat. "I've  
missed you."  
  
"Akane ... I have no control," Ranma confessed raggedly. He  
found and tugged at the drawstring of her gi pants, cursing inwardly at  
the lack of coordination that made his fingers, still not completely  
recovered, fumble at the knot.  
  
Then her hand was there, meeting his briefly, halting his  
awkward attempts to unravel the ties. It had been so long, and they  
were both as eager and unsure as teenagers, and almost as shy. For the  
shortest of moments they were both still, looking into each other's  
eyes, and for once there was no guile nor bitterness nor issues of  
defeat and triumph in either gaze, only a longing to be together as they  
had before.  
  
[Anything Goes.] Akane felt the blood rush to her face at the  
audacity, the impulse that was about to overtake her. She turned her  
head shyly away. "Tear it off."  
  
And that was all the urging that was needed. 

============

For the first time in seven months, Akane woke up to the  
wonderful sensation of being in her husband's arms. Her body protested  
slightly as she stirred. [Okay, falling asleep on the floor was not a  
good idea.] Uh-oh, if she felt like that, what about - ? She turned  
quickly to Ranma.  
  
He was awake, had been awake for some time, apparently. He was  
watching her, but his expression was closed, guarded.  
  
Whatever endearment she was about to greet him with died on her  
lips. Akane searched his features frantically for some trace of the  
tenderness that she had seen an hour ago, or at least some sign that he  
had given up on this mad idea to kill himself. There was nothing.  
  
What she couldn't guess was that Ranma, waking first, had spent  
the last thirty minutes berating himself. He had dreamed of this for  
months, and what had he done when he actually had the chance?! He'd  
lost control, lost himself completely in the sensations and tackled  
Akane right here on the floor! Instead of being gentle and loving, he'd  
been rough and awkward - too many parts of his damned body still weren't  
working right! She couldn't have enjoyed it. [Maybe if I try again,  
exercise some control this time - ]  
  
Akane had no way of knowing that the impatience and frustration  
in Ranma's eyes were directed at himself and not at her. [So this is  
how it's going to be. Though ... apparently he still wants me.] She  
closed her eyes, feeling the tears gather as his hands roamed  
demandingly over her again and his lips pressed roughly against the side  
of her neck.  
  
The loving between her and Ranma had always been just that,  
loving. Even when they got carried away, there was always something -  
a tender look, a whisper, a rueful laugh or a gentle touch - that  
signified that this was more than a simple physical act, it was an  
affirmation of the feelings they had for each other. This time there  
was nothing. [But I'm not going to stop him, not if this is what it  
takes to make him want to live again. My fault. I owe him this much.]  
  
It took Ranma a minute to figure out that something was wrong.  
Akane's arms were wrapped around him, but otherwise she wasn't  
responding. When his kisses reached her cheek, and her tears, he froze.  
He scrambled away from her.  
  
"Ranma, what - ?" Her face mirrored her confusion.  
  
The desperate hope that had carried the pigtailed youth through  
the last half-hour withered. When it came down to it, he was just as  
good at jumping to conclusions as she was, and in his eyes her tears  
said it all. She was doing this out of duty or compassion. That was  
all he was to Akane now, a weakling [a cripple!], an object of pity. He  
couldn't stand it. "Sorry," he muttered stiffly, keeping his gaze  
determinedly away from her. "This was a ... mistake."  
  
If he had been watching her then, he would've seen her recoil.  
If he had slapped her, it might've hurt less. Something in Akane  
twisted, but when she spoke again her voice was cool and controlled. "I  
see." She knotted the broken ends of her gi ties, re-arranged her clothes,   
stood up and handed Ranma his crutches. "Don't think this excuses you from sparring with me."  
  
The youth paused, his hands wrapping around the wooden  
implements. "Akane, I -"  
  
"Just get out, Ranma." Then she remembered. "I have to go and  
make sure Ryouga's alright." [And cry. Because now I know I've lost  
you for sure.]

===========

Akane stacked the groceries on the table. She had come into the  
kitchen through the back door. She'd heard the laughter almost as soon  
as she had stepped into the front yard. She didn't want to interrupt  
that.  
  
She couldn't stand it, either. The ease with which Ranma and  
Ukyou slipped into conversation was hard to watch. She couldn't help contrasting it with the way Ranma avoided her. He didn't even discuss his therapy anymore. He left it up to her completely, although she had to admit that he threw himself into the sessions with a determination that surprised the therapists. She once exchanged an amused glance with Dr. Tofu. This was the Ranma they knew.  
  
She remembered the first time Ranma had walked on his own. It had only been a few feet, but this time there had been no metal rails to hang onto,   
only Dr. Tofu on one side to catch him in case he fell, and her at the end.  
  
"A reward at the end never hurts, neh?" Tofu had winked. She  
wondered if he had noticed the wryness in her answering smile. If he  
really wanted to give Ranma a goal, he should've arranged things so that  
her husband was walking away from her.  
  
But they had done it. Ranma tottered a couple of times, but in  
the end he had made it and she had caught him in her arms. Instinctively, she hugged him tightly, burying her face in the breadth of his chest. [This is worth it. This is worth everything!]  
  
She didn't see the matching expression of happiness that was  
instantly on his face. It was so bright that it made Dr. Tofu turn away  
to give them a little privacy.  
  
All Akane heard was his embarrassed voice. "Aww, it's just a  
few steps. Even kids walk better than me."  
  
Her smile faltered. She remembered every word of their compact.  
It wasn't enough that Ranma could walk; he had to be "back to his old  
self." She drew away from him, but she couldn't get mad at him today,  
even if he was being a stubborn baka. "It's still an accomplishment."  
  
"I guess." Ranma shrugged, but he was grinning when Akane  
assisted him back into a chair.  
  
After that things had gone back to normal, "normal" being both  
of them trying to stay out of each other's way.  
  
" ... I dunno, Ucchan. Things between Akane and me aren't going  
well right now."  
  
Akane halted in the middle of putting the groceries away.  
  
"It can't be that bad."  
  
Ranma harrumphed. "Well, it sure can't be much worse! She's on  
my case all the time." A pause. "I wish sometimes that she had more  
patience, y'know, like you."  
  
"Ranchan ..."  
  
That HURT. Akane's hands clenched into fists. [No way! I know  
it's inevitable but NOT YET!] Quietly she made her way to the back  
door, opened it and banged it shut as loudly as she could. "Tadaima!"  
she sang out.  
  
She could imagine the two scrambling apart. A second later,  
Ukyou came into the kitchen, her greeting a tad too cheerful. "Ohayou,  
Akane! Need help?"  
  
"No thanks, I can manage." Akane resumed unpacking the  
groceries. An idea was forming in her mind. She wondered if she had  
the courage to implement it. "Ukyou ... I need a favor."

"That's what I'm here for. Ask away."  
  
"Will you -" she gulped " - take Ranma to the hospital  
tomorrow?"  
  
The okinomiyaki chef's stunned expression almost made her laugh.

"Akane!" Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Are you sure?"  
  
"He needs encouragement now. I've pushed him this far, but ..."  
she trailed off. "Anyway, he's [happier] more comfortable with you."  
[Whatever's necessary. Remember the dream.] She noticed movement out  
of the corner of her eye. "Isn't that right, Ranma? You don't mind  
Ukyou taking over for awhile, do you?"  
  
"'Course not." Ranma was standing in the doorway with his arms  
crossed in front of his chest, trying hard to appear nonchalant. [I knew  
it. She's tired of me and this situation.] He wondered if he should  
do the noble thing, but the greater part of him still wouldn't,  
couldn't let her go. [Not yet.] "This way you can wrap up the  
afternoon classes and rest for our daily sparring sessions."  
  
Akane was so busy sneaking glances at her husband that at first  
she completely missed the import of his words. The sight of Ranma,  
leaning casually against the doorframe and looking so much like his old  
self was doing funny things to her insides. [I can almost pretend that  
nothing's wrong.] Then it sank in. "Nani?! Sparring sessions?"  
  
"I can stand, sorta walk, move my arms. Should be enough for  
basic stuff, though I won't be no Ryouga." Ranma hoped she didn't  
notice the way he bit off his former rival's name. Ukyou gave him a  
funny glance, though.  
  
"Ranma, you're going to be tired from the therapy."  
  
"So we'll shorten the sessions and make it every other day or  
something." He held up his hand to cut off her protest. "I need to get  
my wind back, Akane. I've got the basics but it's the control that's  
missing, and I think the Art can give me that. Besides, it was your  
idea."  
  
[It does sound plausible, and more importantly, Ranma's  
interested in martial arts again!] Akane nodded. "I'll talk to Dr.  
Tofu."

===========

[I've missed this.] For the first time since the accident,  
Saotome Ranma was content. There had been no barbed remarks today. The  
argument was settled, the decision made. He peeked at Akane  
surreptitiously as she performed the same kata alongside him. They were  
matching moves without even looking at each other. They were completely  
in sync.  
  
[She chose well.] The kata was one of the simpler ones,  
something they had both been doing since they were children, but still a  
cut above beginner's level. It was "soft" and flowing, not involving  
any of the sudden strikes and kicks a hard kempo series required. It  
was the closest thing to meditation the Anything Goes School of Martial  
Arts had. [For the Saotome-ryu, anyway.]  
  
When they finished, the youth sank, with Akane's help, into an  
awkward seiza. He stared fixedly at the floor in front of him.  
  
"Are you sure about this?" Akane's tone was faintly pleading.  
"You could give it more time."  
  
"Hey, we agreed. One month of daily sparring's more than enough  
to find out what I can do." He relented a little in the face of his  
wife's obvious concern. "Aw, don't worry 'bout it so much. I got the  
use of my hands and arms back way before my legs, remember? I wouldn't  
be doing this if I didn't think I was ready." [Liar.] The truth was  
that this frightened him. [Just a little.] "I haveta try sometime."  
  
Reluctantly, the other martial artist nodded. She carefully  
arranged the necessary items in front of him.  
  
Then she took a thin white towel and draped it over the topmost  
concrete brick. "No need to hurt yourself unnecessarily," she said as  
her husband frowned. She stepped back.  
  
Ranma levered himself up and considered the task at hand. The  
two piles of bricks supporting the block he was attempting to break was  
at about upper thigh level. He had originally wanted to try Akane's  
usual set-up, close to the ground, but Akane had balked, arguing that  
Ranma would find the half-kneeling position she usually favored an additional  
strain.  
  
Unspoken between them was the common knowledge that this set-up  
would give him more leverage and that the downward strike would allow him to harness more than just the strength of his arm. In short, the whole thing was a teensy bit easier.  
  
Ranma stood, slightly hunched over the offending block of concrete. A year ago he would've pulverized it without a second thought. Now ... well, they would see. He pressed the knuckles of his right fist flat against the cloth-covered brick, planning the execution of the blow. He bent his elbow and pulled his fist back and upwards against his body, then brought it down on the same spot. He repeated the motion three times, pivoting a bit so that he could bring the rest of his torso into play.  
  
He breathed deeply, gathering strength and chi. Then, with a  
defiant kiai and without the least bit of hesitation, the pigtailed  
youth executed a downward punch that brought callused flesh against  
rough concrete.  
  
The brick crumbled in the middle and fell in pieces to the  
floor.  
  
When he was sixteen, Ranma was smashing man-sized boulders.   
For some reason, he felt the same elation now. He looked at Akane   
with a strange feeling of triumph shining in his blue eyes.  
  
She smiled back, and suddenly her whole face was alight. "You  
did it," she said simply.  
  
"Yeah," Ranma returned as simply, because he couldn't get  
anymore words out. A part of him was embarrassed, thinking that he  
should get a grip because it was actually no big deal, but another side  
was telling him differently. It was saying: Look at Akane, she  
thinks it's an accomplishment, too. So maybe it is, maybe you have done  
something extraordinary today. Enjoy it.  
  
And share it with her, since that's what you want to do so  
badly. "Akane, I -" Ranma hesitated. He'd gotten a little better with  
words over the years, but he was still pretty awkward eight times out of  
ten. "This hasn't been easy for either of us, has it? I'm sorry."  
  
"Oh Ranma, don't apologize." Akane's heart surged wildly with  
hope. [Is this my chance? If I ask him to release me from the oath,  
will he?] She steeled herself. She had to try. "There is something -"  
  
"ITTAI KOKO WA DOKO DA?!" Hibiki Ryouga stood in the   
doorway of the dojo, leaning hard on a stick. His clothes were torn   
and muddy. All in all, his appearance suggested that he had run all   
the way from Osaka.  
  
Which was where Akane felt like sending him right then! She  
hadn't felt more like malleting Ryouga into the sky since the day she  
had found out about P-chan. She reigned in her irritation and  
forcefully reminded herself that, awful timing or not, this was a friend  
who was helping her. "Ohayou, Ryouga," she greeted resignedly. "You're  
-"  
  
"Not wanted." Ranma glowered.  
  
The words surprised the others. Then Ryouga remembered his  
role. Glancing at Akane, he asked in as snide a tone as he could  
manage, "Is that any way to treat a friend, Saotome?"  
  
The pigtailed martial artist intercepted the look and  
immediately misinterpreted it. "You're no friend of mine, Hibiki," he  
replied coldly. "Leave us alone."  
  
[He's mad! Ryouga hasn't done anything. Why is he so angry?]  
Not liking this development at all, Akane tried to calm things down.  
"Ranma, it's okay, we can talk later."  
  
It didn't work. Ukyou was right - Ranma did have a jealous  
streak when it came to Akane - the same streak Akane possessed when it came to her husband. The circumstances, combined with the fact that the okinomiyaki chef had harped on Ryouga's supposed re-discovered passion for Akane every time she could, had pushed this streak to new heights.  
  
"Don'tcha see what this guy is doing, Akane?" Ranma demanded.  
"He's pretending to be your friend, just like he used to pretend to be  
your pet!" He rounded angrily on the yellow-and-black clad youth.  
"Have ya told her yet? What ya said to me months ago? No? Then I will  
since I don't have a goddamned oath to hold me back this time! P-chan  
thinks that you need a real man in your life, Akane, someone who can -  
how'dya put it, pigboy? - actually walk. And that 'real man' is him!"  
  
A gasp escaped the young woman's lips. She had no idea that  
Ryouga had gone that far. No wonder he had looked half-sick after he'd  
spoken with Ranma. "Ryouga, maybe you should go," she suggested,  
meaning it.  
  
Unfortunately, the Lost Youth was still wrapped up in his role.  
"Akane, it's true that I would like to be more than your friend. I'll  
leave if that's what you want, but ... we both know that Ranma is no  
longer worthy of you."  
  
Two seconds later, an enraged gi-clad figure was flying at him.  
His kick knocked Ryouga straight out of the dojo. [Akane is mine! No  
one is taking her away from me, not while I have any breath left in this  
damned body!] He ran to the shoji, intent on following up his attack.  
  
After a moment of surprise, Ryouga twisted in mid-air and landed  
in a crouch. "Well, one thing hasn't changed, Saotome. You still kick  
like a girl." He was grinning like a madman but for different reasons other than what Ranma imagined. [Akane's plan worked.] His rival was back!  
  
"Why I oughtta -"  
  
"Stop it!" Akane, genuinely worried at the unexpected turn of  
events, caught up and held onto her husband's left arm. "What're the two  
of you doing?!"  
  
But Ranma's attention was focused solely on the unwelcome  
intruder. "Hibiki, I challenge you."  
  
"WHAT?!" Both Akane and Ryouga gaped at him in shock.  
  
"You heard me, P-chan! Three weeks from today in the empty lot  
two blocks from here. If I win, you leave me and Akane alone. If you win,  
I step outta the way."  
  
"H-hey!" Akane sputtered in protest.  
  
This time Ranma turned towards her. "Either way, it'll still be  
your choice - we'll both promise that. Besides, didn't you once tell me  
that if it ever came down to it, you could take care of him yourself?"  
he grinned.  
  
"That was Mousse," the girl muttered, distracted. "Waitaminit,  
you can't do this! You don't understand -"  
  
"It's done," was the short reply. "So whatcha say, P-chan? Or  
are you too chicken to put your money where your mouth is?" Suddenly  
something else worried the pigtailed martial artist. What if Ryouga  
simply ignored his challenge? [Left myself wide open. I can almost  
hear it - 'I'm sorry but I don't pick on the weak, Saotome!' Kuso!]  
  
Fortunately or unfortunately, Ryouga understood this part well.  
[We never planned for this! If I refuse, it's like saying that Ranma's  
not worth fighting anymore. If I agree, I could end up hurting him.  
Either way, Akane's going to mallet me into the sun!] He winced at the  
memory of the swing that had connected with his skull when his secret  
had been found out. "I'm sorry, Akane, but as a martial artist, I have  
to accept his challenge."  
  
"But - "  
  
"Akane, don't butt in on a fight between two guys!" her husband  
admonished. It earned him an indignant glare, but he ignored it.  
"Let's make this clear, pigboy." His mouth set in a hard line.  
"Whoever loses steps out of the way. That's all, the rest is up to  
Akane. Oh, and if you don't make it to the lot in time, it's a default.  
It counts, ya got that?"  
  
[He's back alright, the arrogant jerk.] "Ha! You can bet I'll  
be there, Ranma!" [Default, bah!] "I'll see you then, Akane!" Without another word, the directionally-challenged martial artist took off.  
  
"Ryouga, wait!" Akane stamped her feet in frustration.  
What did these baka think they was doing?! Ranma may have made  
progress, but he hadn't recovered more than half of his former strength. He would be no match for his erstwhile rival.  
  
It took her awhile to notice that the figure by her side had  
gone completely still. At least not until he said, "If you want to go  
after him ..."  
  
"That's not what I meant!" Akane protested. "It's just, I don't  
think you should be fighting!"  
  
Blue-gray eyes peered into dark brown ones. "You don't believe  
I can do it." [You used to believe in me, no matter what.]  
  
The strange thing was, Akane did. There was absolutely no  
logical basis for it, but somehow she knew Ranma would pull it off.  
"It's not that," she replied truthfully.  
  
The pigtailed martial artist shrugged, but inside he was all  
nerves. "If you want me out of the way, say so. If pigboy's your  
choice I'll...default. I owe you that much."  
  
She couldn't believe her ears. Ranma throw a fight? It wasn't  
possible. And what was this other business? For him to believe that  
Ryouga liked her was one thing, but for that baka to think that she  
would betray him - that was something else entirely! How could he after  
all she'd done, all she'd gone through for his sake?!  
  
"What are you talking about? I married you, Ranma!" She  
fumed at the necessity of reminding him. Then something else he said  
struck her. [He owes me. Is that all that holds him to me now?  
Gratitude?]  
  
The words weren't what Ranma had been hoping to hear. [So it's  
about duty, huh, Akane? Not ... not love.] But she hadn't chosen  
Ryouga, so he still had a chance. Somehow, he would make everything  
right between them again. He wouldn't give her up, not without a fight.  
  
He tightened the belt around his gi. "Then don't interfere."  
  
==================  
  
For those who think Ranma & Akane are acting OOC by current standards, please   
remember that this is years into the future. Unfortunately, they still don't   
communicate very well. Also, Akane's recurring dream about Ranma's seppuku is   
just that - it's not meant to be an accurate depiction of ritual suicide.  
  
Rough translation of some Japanese words used in this fic:   
  
Baka = fool, idiot, and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma   
  
Kaishoku = the "second" in traditional seppuku. His/her job was to cut  
off the samurai's head before the latter "dishonored" himself by  
showing too much pain   
  
Kimi = you (used by a husband to his wife). Ex. "Kimi no kawaii"   
  
Kuso = a swear word   
  
"Ittai koko wa doko da?!" = "Where on earth am I now?!" Ryouga's  
cry when he's lost and frustrated about it   
  
Musha-shugyo = training journey   
  
Shimatta = "Damn it!"   
  
Shoji = sliding doors, like the one at the Tendo dojo 


	3. Sparks Flying

Disclaimer: Ranma & company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare below is mine. 

Words in (_italics_) are thoughts.

**REKINDLING A FLAME**

**by: Skywatch  
**

**PART THREE: SPARKS FLYING**

Fifteen hour days for eighteen straight days. Ranma took short breaks for meals, but otherwise he trained from dawn onwards. He was in constant motion, doing katas and martial arts exercises to build up his stamina and strength. He joined the dojo's advanced afternoon classes - taught by Akane now - much to the amazement of the students who had seen him after the accident. The surprise quickly turned to chagrin as he sparred with them and brought them all down. There was no question about it; he was still their sensei in the Art.

The pigtailed youth went through the exercise with his usual bravado, but silently he worried. Six of their best students had rushed him in a surprise coordinated effort, and although they'd ended up on the floor, some of their hits had gotten through. A year ago they wouldn't have been able to touch him.

Then there was Akane. With complete objectivity, Ranma admitted that she had improved tremendously over the years. A fight between her and Shampoo would be a toss up now. So it didn't surprise him, considering his present condition, that she won most of their fights.

The problem was that meant he would lose to Ryouga. The Lost Youth had always been his closest rival, and in many things they were an even match. Except for that brief period when Ranma had learned the Kaachu Tenshin Amaguriken and Ryouga hadn't trained for the Bakusai Tenketsu yet, the fights between them had always been close things.

Ryouga wasn't an inventive fighter, but he was immensely tough and determined. Ranma had the edge in speed a lot less than it used to be and tactical ability, but the danger was that Ryouga, allowed enough time, would wear him down enough to land one powerful blow. (_The way I am, one blow would be enough.)_

Splash!

"Whatcha do that for?!" a soaked and female Ranma sputtered.

"Sorry!" A sound that suspiciously resembled a giggle came from Akane as she let the bucket drop. "You looked so serious standing there, I just couldn't resist. Besides," she continued, trying unsuccessfully to sound more serious, "you know the rules. We have to trigger the curse regularly as part of your therapy."

"Well, there's nothing in the rules that says I have to have my clothes on!" Ranma shot back irritably. Automatically, the redhead began fumbling with the ties of the soggy, suddenly ill-fitting, gi.

"Sorry, I just - hey, what do you think you're doing?!"

"What?" Ranma glanced up at the girl who was now taller than him.

"You're taking your shirt off in the middle of the yard!"

"Yeah, so?"

"You're a girl right now, baka!" Akane reminded him indignantly. "The gate's wide open! What if someone passes by and sees you?"

Infuriatingly, the well-endowed pigtailed girl just shrugged. "S'not like it matters. 'Sides, everyone in Nerima knows I'm a guy."

Akane threw up her hands in exasperation. "That's not the point! Ranma, we've talked about this before. You've got to be more modest when you're a girl. I mean, do you like the idea of some pervert ogling you?"

That touched a nerve. "Hey, it's not MY fault some guys go all ditzy at the sight of a naked girl!" the redhead began heatedly, hands on hips and all set to quarrel. "If they can't handle it, that's not my prob--" Ranma's voice suddenly trailed off. His eyes grew wide. "That's it!"

"What's it?"

"Akane." Ranma wasn't looking at her, his eyes were focused far off, but his hand rose and gripped her arm tightly. "You're a genius!"

Not for the first time, her husband had her totally confused, Akane thought. "I am?"

"Yeah!" he sounded positively exuberant. Ryouga, look out! I'm winning this match, no matter what! Then, just as quickly as it came, the cheerfulness went, replaced by something that darkened the pigtailed girl's face. (_Yer not taking her away from me ...)_

The ambiguous visage troubled Akane, more so now that it was on the smaller girl's gamine features. Ranma was usually more relaxed, even mischievous, when he was a girl. Impulsively, she squeezed the hand that still gripped her arm.

"What -" Ranma squeaked, flustered.

That's better. For a moment, Akane considered asking him to withdraw his challenge. But she thought she'd finally come to understand Ranma's reasons for challenging his old rival. (_This is it. He's decided to test his abilities, and what better way than to fight Ryouga? Kami, why couldn't he choose Kuno?_) If she had foreseen this, she would've never involved Ryouga. Heck, she would've sent him on a one-way boat ride to Hokkaido!

Too late now. "I just wanted to say good luck." Her smile masked her nervousness. So much at stake on one fight! But then this was the way it had been all their lives.

Ranma blinked in surprise. "Uh, thanks." He paused uncertainly. "Will you be there, Akane?"

There he goes again, Akane thought. What made me think that he was getting predictable? "Whatever happened to don't interfere in a fight between two guys'?" she teased.

She'd mimicked him so well that he had to laugh. "Well you're not going to interfere ..." He looked at her solemnly. "Besides, you kinda have a stake in the outcome, too."

"I'll say," she sighed. "Yes, of course, I'll be there."

* * *

Akane sat at her old desk, gazing at the quiet world outside her window. How had the days passed by so fast?

She'd tried to sleep. She actually had for maybe an hour or two, but then the dream had begun. Only it had changed.

A black-clad Ryouga easily held a katana poised over Ranma's neck. Akane was running towards the pair, frantic to stop them. But even as she ran she knew that she was too slow or the distance was too great, she was never going to make it.

"I'm sorry, Akane, but this is giri, neh?" Ryouga called out with a toothy apologetic smile, "Ranma asked me. I can't back out." Akane screamed as the blade flashed down.

It was a pretty accurate representation of her feelings right now. She had tried, without being to obvious about it, to locate Ryouga so she could reason with him. She had searched logically, in a pattern of concentric circles that narrowed towards the dojo. The problem, she realized too late, was that she had looked for Ryouga as if he were anyone else. As the day of the fight drew nearer, she'd assumed that he would be making his way steadily to the dojo and that he'd be closer. But this was the Lost Youth. If there was a pattern to Ryouga's movements and the way he traveled, she didn't understand it. She doubted even Ryouga did. He could be anywhere and still pop up at the empty lot in time or get lost entirely and end up in Hokkaido. (_Please make it Hokkaido.)_

Akane gave up on sleep and stood up. Maybe some warm milk will help. As she made her way to the kitchen, she wondered how Ranma was, now that the fight was just hours away. They had taken to sleeping in separate bedrooms and Ranma had been locked inside his room since morning. Although he had called out a greeting when she returned, she hadn't seen him.

'Maybe it was a good thing that I didn't find Ryouga,' she thought as she sat on a stool and sipped from her warm cup. As much as she hated to admit it, Ranma was right. This was the test he had chosen, and under the rules of their Art (if not quite their school) she wasn't supposed to interfere. It wasn't even a fight to the death. That it was dangerous on so many other levels didn't count. Even if Ranma wins, a beating from Ryouga now might undo all the therapy. And if Ranma lost, he would demand ... Oh kami. She shivered.

"Kinda cold tonight, isn't it?" Akane sensed her husband a few seconds before he spoke. Steady hands wrapped a blanket around her shoulders.

"So how's Kasumi?" Ranma asked. Akane's excuse for being out all day was a visit to her pregnant sister.

(_I wish I knew.)_ Kasumi hadn't spoken to her in months. The last time she had visited, oneechan had firmly reproved Akane for her behavior towards Ranma. Although Akane longed to confide in somebody she could trust and talk to, she couldn't tell her oldest sister about the promise. Kasumi would be horrified, and that was the last thing her sister needed in her condition.

"She's fine." That was true as far as Akane knew. "You should be resting. Ryouga's coming back today, isn't he?"

"Feh, if he doesn't get lost," Ranma scoffed. "Don't mind me, I just got up for some water." His words were a little hurried; he wasn't a good liar. He had gotten up to get a drink, but the sight of the light coming from the kitchen had set his heart beating. Akane. He missed her, he guessed, or maybe he missed the way things used to be between them. He had crept down and watched her from the doorway for awhile, before coming in. The look on her face was so sad, so faraway.

Akane stood up. "Want some milk? I just heated some, it should still be warm."

"Sure. Hey, since I'm up anyway, why don't I make us some sandwiches to go with that? Sort of a midnight snack?" he grinned.

"Ranma, it's three in the morning."

"Ok, a very early breakfast." He already had a knife out and some bread. "Where'd you put the cheese? Do we have ham?"

She handed them to him, and Ranma was off. Seeing Ranma's skills put to use in the preparation of food was something that never failed to make Akane a little envious. She knew from experience that the slices of cheese, ham and bread flying in the air from the speed of his chops would be a bit raggedy around the edges but would otherwise be even. Although Akane's food was far from toxic now, Ranma would always be the faster and better cook. Before the accident, he had done more than a fair share of the cooking. Akane's job had been to make sure that they had a proper stock of food and that the bills were paid. Ranma didn't have a lot of patience when it came to stores and credit cards.

Ranma brushed the crumbs from his hands. "Here."

"Thanks." Akane handed him a steaming mug of milk. "Careful, I just reheated that."

"Okay."

They ate together, and for an hour or so it was almost like old times, the two of them sharing an easy domesticity that came from being together for so long. They began to talk, first about family and friends (omitting Ryouga), and then about the dojo and the students.

"I think Kensai's getting serious about martial arts," Akane said. "He's been attending almost every class."

"We'll see." Ranma's tone was non-committal.

"Give him a chance. Just because he's Kuno's cousin ..."

"It ain't that." The pigtailed martial artist toyed with his mug. Kensai possessed many of the Kuno traits - he was tall and dark-haired, and Ranma supposed that girls found him good-looking - but he wasn't crazy and he didn't break into bad poetry. Ranma had a sneaking suspicion, though, that Kensai had the same Kuno predilection for certain Tendos. "I just don't trust this sudden dedication of his to martial arts. He wasn't around much when I was teaching the advanced classes."

Akane gave him a strange look. Then she threw her head back and laughed.

"What? What did I say?" he asked, bewildered.

"Ranma Saotome, I do believe you're jealous!"

"No way! Why should I be jealous over a clumsy uncute tom-" Akane grinned at him knowingly. "Okay, fine. Maybe a little," he growled, "but that doesn't mean it ain't true."

Ranma sneaked a glance at his wife - with her tousled hair and eyes teary from laughter, and the sunny smile that was still there - and suddenly knew that he would never keep the bargain with Ryouga even if his rival won. He would fight tooth and nail if he had to. He would never give her up.

What was he doing, anyway, making her a stake in a fight like this? He had allowed it so cavalierly before, when he had been so blazingly cocksure that he would never lose a fight. Then again, all sixteen year-olds thought they were immortal, Ranma more than most, because for a long time he hadn't met anything he couldn't beat. But later events had chipped away at that certainty - Herb and the Musk Dynasty, Phoenix Mountain, where he and Akane almost died, and now this past year. None of them were invulnerable. He wouldn't take that for granted again. Thanks to pride and temper though, here he was repeating the same mistake. 'Ranma no baka,' he thought ruefully.

"Akane, I -" I'm sorry. _(This fight's stupid. I should've told you why bacon breath bugs me so much. I shouldn't have ...)_

"Ranma -" (_please don't do this. I believe in you, but there are so many things that could go wrong. There's nothing between me and Ryouga. I'd never ..._)

"Go ahead," she said.

He hesitated. (_Too late to back out now._) "I don't want you to worry." _(She deserves a choice. If she's still with me just because of duty, this will give her a way out ... but I ain't giving up without a fight.)_ Mind made up, he got to his feet. "Akane."When she tilted her head to look up at him, he leaned towards her and kissed the startled expression off her face. 'I'm not going to lose you,' he thought, but never said. Instead, he whispered, "I'm not going to lose."

* * *

Ryouga stared disbelievingly at the vacant lot in front of him. "KU-SO!" The expletive echoed as he scanned the area. (_Figures. The one time I actually **try** to get lost ...)_ He dropped his pack at the foot of a familiar-looking tree and indian-sat next to it. A disgusted look at the sky confirmed his suspicions. Not only was he where he was supposed to be, he was a couple of hours early.

That was where Akane found him. Even with his back to her, the bandana and the yellow shirt were unmistakable. "Ryouga," she whispered, more to acknowledge his presence to herself than to call him.

He heard her anyway. Ryouga scrambled to his feet, facing her but keeping his eyes averted after one glance. He had come to Akane many times – as a pig and as a man – but never had she met him with such dread in her eyes. That he should be the cause of her fear was hard to bear.

It had taken him days to figure out that Akane didn't actually want him to fight Ranma. He was chopping wood and mulling over the unexpected challenge from Ranma when the thought hit: maybe Akane's interruptions and protests had been real? (_Shimatta.)_

"I'm sorry, Akane," Ryouga blurted out. "I tried-" (_But not hard enough, else I'd still be in Hokkaido now, wouldn't I?_) All he'd had to do was to stay put, but pride and honor wouldn't allow him to default. So he had started out, hoping that he would lose his way and be too late instead. And why not? It had happened many times before.

Just not this time. He had declined the choice, and left it to fate, and fate had decided to give him a chance to beat Ranma – Kami-sama, where had that thought come from?! He sagged against the tree. NO! To beat his rival when the latter was weakened by chance was not ... it DIDN'T count. Nothing in this duel mattered, Ryouga reminded himself, except that Ranma be whole at the end of it and Akane find some measure of peace.

Ryouga straightened, firmly resolved now. "Akane -"

"Ryouga -"

Akane motioned at him to go ahead.

Ryouga cleared his throat. Over the years, he had learned the hard way that even difficult things sometimes needed to be said. "I'm not here to hurt Ranma. This fight's not about winning, but," he hurried as he saw the relief on her face, "I can't not fight him, Akane. You know the rules as well as I do. A challenge was issued, one martial artist to another."

"But it was a challenge based on a misunderstanding!" the girl protested. "Ranma was angry. For some reason, he thinks that you and I ..." she trailed off, embarrassed. How could she explain Ranma's irascible determination to fight his old rival, when she didn't completely understand it herself?

But Ryouga did, and in that moment he knew he was going to tell her. Whether it was this troubling subterfuge with Ranma or the fact that he was simply ready at last, the time for half-truths between him and Akane was over. Besides, he had promised. He had abused her trust once, and almost lost her friendship as a consequence. To make amends, he had given her his word. "I will never lie to you again, Akane-san. Well, not about anything that matters."

(_Guess this matters._) He took a deep breath. (_Strange how I can face all kinds of natural disasters and martial arts challengers without a qualm, but talking to a girl still ties me up in knots._) This girl in particular. "Akane, it's not so weird." Warmth suffused his cheeks, and his heart started hammering. "I … Ranma knows that I … loved you for a very long time."

To say that the object of his declaration was taken aback was putting it lightly.

"Wha - what?" Stunned was more like it.

She never even guessed. Ryouga grinned weakly. "I tried to tell you once. There was a letter …"

"That was you?" Akane remembered it clearly, the unsigned letter that had come out of the blue one cool day, delivered by a strange friendly dog. The love it had confessed had been ardent and noble, and had moved her to reply with more honesty than an anonymous letter would've ordinarily merited.

"I'm sorry. I love someone else,' she had written in a steady hand, her heart pounding hard. But she couldn't bring herself to write Ranma's name, not then. The knowledge was too raw, and the situation between Ranma and her had been tenuous at best.

It was the first time she had admitted it to someone else. As it was she had just begun to acknowledge it to herself. And now it turned out that the first person she'd told about her feelings for Ranma was Ryouga?! (_And he was in love with me? Kami._) Such a strange coincidence, and yet somehow wildly appropriate. Sometimes it seemed to Akane that the Fates trained a winking eye on - what was it Sayuri called them? oh yes - the Nerima Wrecking Crew.

"Ryouga, I ..." Akane trailed off. Her thoughts were a jumble. (_He must've been hurt when I sent the letter. And was this why he'd spent all that time with me as P-chan?_) She had thought it strange then that when she discovered Ryouga's curse, Ranma had tried to plead his case. It had hurt her deeply. Of course, she had punched out Ranma's lights, too, when she found out that her fiancée had known.

When they finally talked, Ranma would only say that Ryouga had good reasons, and that he understood them even if Ryouga's actions were dead wrong. "I wouldn't have left you with him, Akane, if I wasn't absolutely sure that you were safe with Ryouga. I know I snuck around your room and stuff, tried to take the pig out. But if I thought for one moment that he was really taking advantage of you, I would've fought him outright and hurled him to China myself." Then he had bent his head. "But I am sorry, Akane. Whatever we thought, it was wrong to fool you. We didn't even consider how you'd feel. Ryouga shouldn't have been with you all those times without your consent."

Now it all made sense. (_Ryouga **was** in love with me._) It was Akane's turn to take a deep calming breath. Then, how callous it must have seemed for her to ask him to resurrect the feud with Ranma. A feud, she now understood, that must've involved in some measure Ryouga's feelings for her. "I'm sorry," she tried again. "I never meant to, I didn't know - "

"No, no, it's okay!" Ryouga interrupted hurriedly. The last thing he wanted was her apology. "It was a long time ago. When you married Ranma, I -" Let it go, he was about to say, but stopped. That wasn't quite true, was it?

He shook his head. This is NOT the time for this. A depreciating inward grin played around his lips. (_Then again timing was never my strong suit._) "Akane-san, I promise we'll talk about this some day." The honorific use of her name restored a little distance between them, necessary after his startling declaration. "For now, why don't we see if we can talk Ranma out of this fight?"

* * *

Ranma didn't wait for Akane's answer. He peeled himself soundlessly away from the tree that served as his hiding place and took off. He had to get back to the house before them.

Despite the cool demeanor he had kept around Akane, waiting for the appointed time had made him restless. Since there were still a couple of hours to go, he'd taken off for a walk to stretch his legs. The two voices that floated towards him as he neared the empty lot froze him in his tracks.

'Surely,' he told himself as he drew nearer, 'no, it can't be.' But the thought persisted even as he denied it: Akane couldn't have arranged to meet Ryouga behind his back. She wouldn't do that to me.

It wouldn't even have occurred to the man he had been a year ago. But the months of self-doubt, the arguments and rebukes, his rival's insinuations, and the distance between him and Akane had done their damage. Where the Ranma of a year or five years ago would've simply revealed himself and asked what was going on, Ranma now chose concealment.

But we were working things out! The past couple of days had been good. Just not reassuring enough to keep him from spying on the oblivious couple.

As he darted away, he tried to make sense of what he'd heard. It wasn't everything; he hadn't really been in the right place for Akane's words to come through clearly. But the little that he could make sense of nearly knocked him off his feet.

"Akane ... Ranma knows that I ... loved you for a very long time ..."

Ryouga told her! After all these years. Ranma could barely believe it. Ryouga had just let go the last secret he kept from Akane.

"I tried to tell you once. There was a letter ... No, no, it's okay! ... Akane-san, I promise we'll talk about this some day. For now, why don't we see if we can talk Ranma out of this fight?"

But why did Ryouga tell her now? Did Ryouga think that, because of Ranma's condition, he had a better chance?

'He thinks I would just back out?!' the pigtailed youth thought indignantly as he ran. Now it really was too late. A line had been crossed. Another man, Ranma's rival no less, had just professed love to his wife. Ryouga, you DARE? I'll show you!

All doubts and peaceable thoughts flew from Ranma's mind. He seethed. And yet ... at the same time there it was, the long-missed thrill coursing through him at the anticipation of a real fight. Ranma acknowledged it with a mocking grin. What had the old mummy called it? Battlejoy?

Time to see if my plan's worth anything. Watch out, Ryouga!

* * *

This completes Part 3. Thank you for your patience. :) This was meant to be the last chapter in Rekindling, and was originally written/outlined to include the fight between Ranma and Ryouga and the confrontation between Ranma and Akane. I tried to write it that way but wasn't satisfied with the result. It got too long and ungainly. I was stuck until I placed the fight and confrontation in a chapter of their own, "Conflagration" (coming soon).

I really appreciate the reviews! They definitely encouraged this writer to continue. That stuff about my "loyal fans" got me grinning at the screen. Thanks, Shaeya!

Damian, I hope your throat's ok. ;) Your review was just the push I needed to tackle a difficult scene. Folks, it never hurts to know that the story's appreciated. :)

As for grammatical and other errors, please feel free to point them out. Constructive criticisms are really helpful.

elisteran, i agree that the miscommunication bit can be overdone. Hope that wasn't the case here. It does happen in the Ranmaverse and to Ranma and Akane all the time, though, and it's a main component of this story (which is also about Ranma and Akane growing up some more). You'll probably be happier with the next chapter.

jan, after some reflection, i agree that the story as it stands should be rated PG-13 and not R. Of course it might go up sometime. We'll see...

Japanese words:

Baka - fool, idiot, and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma  
Giri - dutyKuso - a swear word  
"Ittai koko wa doko da?!" - "Where on earth am I now?!" Ryouga's cry when he's lost and frustrated about it.  
Musha-shugyo - training journey  
Shimatta - "Damn it!"  
Shoji - sliding doors, like the one at the Tendo dojo 


	4. Conflagration

Ranma company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare below is mine. CC welcome. First fanfic warning applies. Here goes ...

Words in (_italics_)are thoughts.

**REKINDLING A FLAME**

**by: Skywatch**

**PART FOUR: CONFLAGRATION**

"Oh no," Akane said in a voice that crumpled around the edges. She snatched the note pinned to the door and handed it to Ryouga.

"But how does he know I'm here?" the youth asked in bewilderment as he scanned the hastily scrawled words. Ranma's scratchy handwriting was unmistakable.

Akane's eyes widened. "He saw us."

Ryouga threw her a curious glance.

"There's no other explanation. It says, Akane, make sure Ryouga meets me at the lot in two hours,' and that in the meantime I should treat you as a guest." She didn't add that Ranma had also written, "I don't want pig-boy to think he has any excuses when I beat him.' Ryouga could read that himself.

"He knows we're together. He must've seen us," she continued worriedly. (_What did you see, Ranma? Worse, what did you hear?)_ Even if all he had heard was Ryouga's declaration, she knew he would be furious. (_You're not going to let us talk to you, are you?)_

Ryouga shrugged off his pack and placed it by the door. He returned the piece of paper to Akane without further comment. "We could go back," he offered kindly.

"Thank you, I -" Akane began to say. Then she stopped as she took a good look at him, really paid attention to Ryouga's appearance for the first time since he arrived.

Dark smudges circled the Lost Youth's eyes and tiny lines of strain hovered around his mouth. He also seemed a little pale beneath the perennial weather-beaten tan that was the mark of Ryouga's life on the road. (_He looks tired and hungry. Of course, he must've been on the road for days! Akane no baka! This is no way to treat a guest, much less a friend.)_

Akane quickly weighed the options. She sensed that locating Ranma in the few hours left would be difficult, if not impossible. If she and Ryouga dashed off now, and failed to find Ranma in time and talk him out of the fight, then an exhausted Ryouga would face an irate Ranma. Although that sounded like it gave Ranma an advantage, it wasn't. A weary Ryouga would be prone to mistakes. A carefully angled non-lethal strike could easily slip out of control. And ... it wasn't right. Knowing what she did and ignoring it just so she could feel better (because a big part of her was screaming FIND RANMA!) did no honor to Ranma, Ryouga or herself.

"I really appreciate it, but would you mind if we had something to eat first?" she continued instead, choosing words that betrayed no hint of what she had noticed. She guessed that if Ryouga thought that the delay was purely for his sake, he would surely refuse. This way left him free to agree or not, depending on how he really felt. (_Living with a touchy macho martial artist taught you things like that.)_ Ranma and Ryouga were similar in many ways, though Akane doubted she would ever have trouble convincing her husband to take a break to eat.

She knew she had guessed right when Ryouga didn't protest, but merely asked, "Are you sure?" As used to long treks as Ryouga was, this trip had been hard on him. His ambivalent feelings about the fight ahead had robbed him of peace for several nights. He hadn't slept well, and his restiveness had even interfered with his ability to track game.

Akane nodded. "We have a couple of hours, and I doubt Ranma will show up at the lot or let us find him until it's time to fight," she replied truthfully. "Besides, I haven't had anything since (_3 a.m. ... kami, Ranma where are you?)_ breakfast." The longing that rose up in her at the thought of that easygoing impromptu "breakfast" surprised her. She swallowed and pushed the door to the house open. "I warn you, though, I'm going to have to do some cooking."

To her surprise, Ryouga smiled good-naturedly as he followed her. "You must have me confused with a certain baka we both know. I never did mind your cooking, Akane."

* * *

An errant wind blew across the vacant lot, stirring the dust onto the patches of grass and at the feet of the two newcomers. 

Akane paused before skipping over the low barbed wire fence that marked the boundaries of the lot. This place held many memories for her. She had reclaimed her birthright as the Tendo dojo's heir here, although the actual fight came later. She could never pass here without slowing down. Ranma used to tease her about it...

"_I knew that this is where I'd find you. Here, gimme that," Ranma grinned as he took the shopping bag from her. "What is it with you and this place? Reliving your days as a runaway?"_

_Akane was a little embarrassed at being caught staring out into space. "Very funny. What're you doing here anyway?"_

"_Oh I finished the class early. Students were obviously looking forward to winter break too much to concentrate," he shrugged. "So I showed them a new kata and let em go to 'practice'. They better get it right, though. I'll really lay into em next class," he ended cheerfully._

"_Meanie," his wife tossed off as she started to walk back to the dojo._

_Ranma fell into step beside her. "Hey, quit changing the subject."_

_Akane sighed, knowing that Ranma wouldn't let it rest until she told him what he wanted to know. "You remember the sisters? The ones we thought might be Otousan's daughters?"_

"_Sure. They challenged us for the dojo, and you ran away after we lost the first fight." The pigtailed youth gestured at the vacant lot. "Here, right? You spent a couple of days training."_

"_You did, too."_

"_Yeah, near the canal. First time I deliberately trained my girl side. Came back with speed like you wouldn't believe," he declared breezily, obviously pleased with himself. "Oyaji made a couple of suggestions that made sense, believe it or not. And you? What was it like training with P-chan?"_

"_Ra-n-ma," she growled warningly. Although she'd already forgiven Ryouga for the P-chan incident, it was still a sore topic. _

_Ranma raised his hands placatingly. "Hey, no offense meant. C'mon, Akane, tell me. I know Oyaji and your father were amazed at how much you improved in those couple of days." _

"_And you weren't, of course," Akane said. It was an old, little hurt, and she tried not to let it show._

"_What was there to be amazed at?" Ranma asked in surprise. "I'd seen it before, the girl who fought a hundred bully-jocks everyday at school in ten minutes flat. Maybe the skills were better, but the determination was the same. You have a ..." he groped for words, "... fire in you, Akane. It doesn't let you stay beat for long, does it? I know coz I got the same thing in me."_

_Akane halted and stared at him._

_Ranma stopped too. "What?" _

"_Alright, who are you and what did you do to my husband?" Akane demanded._

"_Very funny," it was his turn to sniff. "Anyway, what does all this have to do with the vacant lot?"_

_Akane sighed. "That girl you were talking about? I stopped being her for awhile," she confessed. "Nabiki was right, I was slacking and I let my training lapse. Then those sisters came." She started walking again, keeping her gaze on the sidewalk, not looking at him. "The time I spent by myself in that lot wasn't just about getting my skills back. It was about me regaining my mindset and confidence as a martial artist." _

"_I guess it was because I actually had some time to myself, and I was able to sort through all the jumbled thoughts in my head." She smiled at the memory, a sixteen-year-old girl in a ratty, torn gi, staring at the heavens and finally getting mad at the right things in her life. (_So Ranma's better than me and maybe I'll never catch up, and Otousan, my own sensei, has stopped training me because he expects Ranma to do all the dirty work. SO WHAT? What does it matter if I'm not on Ranma's level? Either I'm a martial artist and I love the Art, and I keep and hone the skills I have, or I lose everything I've worked for since I was a child!

_It took Akane less than a heartbeat to decide. (_I'll train on my own if I have to!) _Of course as it turned out she hadn't needed to train alone. Ryouga had shown up back then, too..._

* * *

Ahead of Akane, a more alert Ryouga placed his backpack under the same tree he had chosen before. A proper meal and a twenty-minute nap had done wonders. He unstrapped his iron umbrella, considered it briefly, and stood it next to the pack. _(Sorry, old friend, you sit this one out.)_

He scanned the area again. They had already circled the vacant lot twice with the same result: no Ranma.

"Looks like he wants us to wait," Ryouga said in a tone that attempted to be nonchalant. He was actually nervous. (_Masaka, this is the first time I've ever been to one of these things on time! Usually I just rush in and fight. This waiting around is so unnerving.)_

"Where could he be?" Akane clasped her hands together in anxiety.

"I'm right here!" The voice, brimming with confidence and challenge, rang clearly in the surrounding stillness.

Ryouga and Akane turned in shock towards the voice - the one voice they never expected to hear at this fight - and gasped.

"Ranma!" Ryouga and Akane exclaimed in shock.

_(But why would ?)_ Even in her thoughts, Akane stuttered. Then she took a closer look at the pigtailed GIRL who was her husband. (_He's ... she's ...! Where in the blue blazes did Ranma get that outfit!)_

The short buxom figure was scantily clad for early fall, and especially for a fight. A black, body-hugging, v-neck half-shirt left throat, arms, a little cleavage, most of the redhead's shoulders and midriff bare. Dark denim shorts skimmed the top of onna-Ranma's thighs.

After awhile, Akane began to recognize the clothes. The clingy black shirt was a cut-up stretch tank top, the kind Ranma sometimes used for snorkeling. The shorts were hers, minus about three inches of leg cover. The designer pair of denim wear had been slashed, too, with the ends left to unravel. One of Akane's eyes began to twitch.

Ryouga stared at his opponent in disbelief. (_This doesn't make sense!)_ It wasn't the unseemly outfit that got Ryouga's attention (although it did) as much as the glaring fact that Ranma had shown up to their duel as a **girl**. When he had a choice, Ranma always, ALWAYS fought as a guy. Although his cursed form was fast, Ranma preferred to fight in his real form. He was more confident that way; after all, it was the body he was used to. To Ryouga there was only one explanation: Onna-Ranma was up to something...

"You were expecting someone else?" onna-Ranma's voice was unruffled and a tad amused. The pigtailed girl stood easily on a pile of large steel pipes that had been in the vacant lot for as long as they could remember. The redhead's stance was relaxed but also insolent somehow, with one hand draped carelessly around a shapely hip.

"Will you fight, Ryouga?" the pigtailed girl invited in tones so cool that it could've been an invitation to dance.

"Ranma -" Akane tried to interrupt, brimming with the words that she desperately wanted to say.

She never got the chance.

Ranma's eyes slid to his wife for the length of a heartbeat before they focused on his rival again and effectively dismissed her from notice. "You're only supposed to watch, Akane."

The rebuke was uttered in the same mild, almost gentle tones Ranma had been using, but it was the scalding pass from Ranma's eyes that silenced Akane. That one glance gave the lie to his cool demeanor. Akane had not seen Ranma this mad in a long time. When he was like this, there was no telling what he was capable of.

Akane's heart thudded. (_The vow.)_ In a couple of weeks it would be winter, and the year she had asked for over. In Ranma's present mood, he could invoke her promise and because they hadn't proved that he was back to his "old self" she would have no choice ... The thought paralyzed her for the few seconds it took for Ranma to jump down nimbly from his perch and assume a fighting stance.

"Shall we, Ryouga?" The redhead smiled, baring teeth.

Ryouga bowed his head briefly.

Then he stepped forward, brought his arms up ... and instantly sensed that, whatever his advantage, he would not be able to control this fight. Again, he was assailed by the feeling that this arrogant being in front of him was truly his rival, his equal, the yardstick Ryouga measured his abilities against. (_If this **is** Ranma, he's going to push himself as far as he can - until we have no choice but to fight for real.)_

The fanged youth clenched his fists. (_Doesn't mean I'm gonna let him.)_ "Ready when you are, Saotome."

The words were barely out of his mouth when the redhead leapt forward with a cry, leg extended in a punishing kick.

Just as swiftly, Ryouga sidestepped. He spun into the arc of the kick and retaliated with an upward thrust punch.

Ranma was having none of it. He twisted away from Ryouga's fist, landed in a half-crouch and launched another flurry of kicks. Ryouga levered himself out of the way, ducking one and then another kick, letting them slip over his shoulders, countering when he could with his own punches.

Akane gasped as Ranma nearly fell for one of Ryouga's feints, spinning away at the last possible second. (_Close, too close!)_ The martial artist in her was more dispassionate, analyzing the duel and automatically comparing it with the dozens of other fights she had witnessed between the two over the years.

The most obvious difference was the grim hush of this fight. Ranma and Ryouga's battles had always been noisy affairs, full of boasts and traded insults. This time only the occasional "kiai!" and the whoosh of legs, arms and bodies moving at terrific speeds punctured the air. Eyeing each other warily, Ranma and Ryouga moved to a tuneless dance. They circled, darted in and out of each other's reach, and met in brief staccato bursts of violence before breaking apart to seek new openings.

Ryouga kept mainly to his fists. From Akane's vantage point she could see that many of his punches were minutely slow because he was reining them in. (_He must not want to use his kicks, in case that does too much damage.)_ But even if he was holding back, it was obvious that Ryouga had the advantage. He had gotten stronger and tougher over the years, and although he wasn't renowned for speed, people often forgot that Ryouga seemed slow only in comparison to Ranma.

Ranma was taking the opposite route. He used his hands and arms to block and parry, attacking mostly with kicks. It wasn't his usual style, and Akane took a second to understand the change. Ranma was fighting smart, keeping it simple, not risking the additional strain of a somersault where a plain leap would do. Not even leaping except when it couldn't be helped, because each time he left the ground meant another split-second effort to regain his footing.

Akane worried as Ranma strove to keep his distance from Ryouga. (_He doesn't want to get too close because Ryouga can pummel him. But how long can he keep it up?)_

The same question was running through Ranma's mind. (_This is going nowhere! I haven't taken any damage, but neither has Ryouga.)_ To tell the truth, he was surprised - and pleased - that he was matching Ryouga so well. The extra speed in his female body helped, and his tactics were working. But Ranma wasn't going to kid himself. This was only a preliminary bout. Ryouga, for some reason, was not fighting at his best yet. Maybe he wanted to assess the extent of Ranma's regained skills first. Ranma, on the other hand, was nearly at his limit.

_(I can't possibly outlast Ryouga. I gotta take some risks!)_ Unless Ranma beat him to it, Ryouga would up the ante soon and take charge of the fight. Ranma took a deep breath.

"Kaachu tenshin amaguriken!"

Lulled by the straightforward technique Ranma had been using, several chestnut fists slipped past Ryouga's defenses.

"Urk!" Ryouga grunted as speed strikes pounded the same spot in his gut. He staggered back, shielding his stomach from more hits. (_He can do his special attacks!) _Ryouga could barely believe it. Onna-Ranma's amaguriken speed had slowed to around male Ranma's and the punches were weaker, but it looked like Ranma had the full use of his arms back.

_(Here's my chance!)_ As his opponent fell back, Ranma quickstepped backwards, creating more space between them. Dropping his arms, he gathered his chi and cried -

"Shi shi hokoudan!"

A red-white column of chi streaked from Ranma into the sky, then arrowed down towards the combatants. It was the closest Ranma had ever come to a perfect Lion's Roar blast.

But Ryouga hadn't forgotten the incident in the dojo, and this time he was prepared. (_That jerk!_ _Using a technique **I** perfected against me!)_ He scrambled to drain himself of chi and deflect Ranma's blast.

"Shi shi hokoudan!" he roared back, sending another crackling flare of energy upwards. It hurtled angrily towards its twin.

**KA-BOOM!** The twin columns of white-hot chi met in a deafening flash that illuminated the combatants and echoed for miles.

Akane shielded her eyes from the blinding glare. The blasts had collided just above Ryouga, and the energy of it was just beginning to dissipate. Akane sighed in relief as the remnants of the explosion rained down harmlessly like silver fireworks. It was even a little pretty.

Ranma and Ryouga stared hard at each other through the curtain of light that cascaded on and around the fanged youth, nipping at his skin like the pinpricks of tiny needles. Both fighters were breathing hard, their chests visibly heaving with each gulp of air.

That was the trouble with the shi shi hokoudan, Ryouga mused, the aftermath usually left the user drained and feeling a lot like soggy sushi. Course, the recipient of the blast wasn't supposed to be in any condition to take advantage by then.

Akane let go of the breath she hadn't been aware of holding.

Less than two minutes had elapsed since the fight had begun.

It was enough time for Ranma to realize that he wasn't going to win this way. (_I just can't beat Ryouga in a straight fight, not in this condition.)_ He balled his fists. There was no choice; he had to switch to his plan. It was a gamble, but at least this way he had a chance.

Ryouga, on the other hand, was beginning to lose his temper. Kicks and amaguriken-speed punches were one thing, but chi attacks were a hundred times more difficult to control and infinitely more dangerous. (_That idiot! If he tries any more stunts like that we could both end up in a hospital.) _"Yamero!" he shouted. "Baka yarou! Enough of this! Listen, you !"

Ranma swallowed. This was the opening he was looking for, but ... (_I sure wish Akane wasn't here.)_ And yet that wasn't quite true. He had wanted her to be present. He wanted Akane to see him win, to show her that he was back in all senses of the word. He'd been so excited about that, he hadn't stopped to think about the embarrassing stuff. (_Can't worry bout that now.)_

The pigtailed girl held a hand out. "Stop, Ryouga, I know what you're going to say."

The sudden change clearly bewildered Ryouga. "You ... do?"

"Sure." Ranma visibly relaxed. The redhead's voice became hesitant, almost shy. "I ... I've been trying to avoid this, but I guess it's no use."

Ryouga was surprised for a second. Then he thought he had Ranma's strategy figured out. It was disappointing really, that Ranma thought this pseudo-girly stuff would still work on him. (_After all the tricks he's pulled on me over the years! We're not teenagers anymore.)_ It was still embarrassing, though. "Saotome, if you think I'm going to go easy on you just coz you're in your girl form!" he began indignantly.

But it was fair to say that what happened next was somewhat beyond Ryouga's expectations.

The pigtailed girl struck a pose that was, to put it mildly, highly provocative. "It's alright, Ryouga. I ... I know what you really want," the redhead said softly. "You want me, isn't that it? You've always wanted me."

"NANI!" That was Akane, but Ranma kept hisattention on his wide-eyed rival.

"You said I was beautiful the first time you saw me in this form. I never forgot that," Ranma continued in a limpid voice.

"I NEVER SAID THAT!" Ryouga denied hotly, recovering from his shock. "I said you should consider yourself lucky that - that ..." (_Oh kuso! I did say it. But that sure as hell wasn't what I meant!) _The youth was embarrassed and flustered by the half-true slur. "Dammit, Saotome!"

_(Gotcha, pig boy. Ya never did learn to take a joke.)_ Ranma allowed himself a tiny satisfied smile. "You don't have to pretend anymore," the redhead chided softly. "We both know this fight isn't about Akane."

"RRRANMA …!" Ryouga growled.

Ranma ignored the outburst and stretched with feigned carelessness. The half-shirt lifted, showing more of the redhead's flawless, toned midriff, and was precariously close to revealing other, more dangerous curves. "Can I say it any plainer, Ryouga? Isn't this enough to show you how I feel?" (_Kami, I think my stomach just crawled into my lungs.)_ "This is no time to be shy! Come and get me, big boy."

"How dare you!" Ryouga sputtered, turning a shade short of crimson.

_(And now, as Nabiki would say, to clinch the deal.0_ "Is that any way to talk to someone who almost became your fiancé?" the pigtailed girl asked in a hurt tone. "Especially after what we ... shared?"

A vein began to pulse in Ryouga's head. "Sh - shared!" he whispered in horror. Their eyes met. He knew exactly what Ranma was talking about. That Ranma would make fun even of this!

Ryouga would never forget it. The hope that soared in a lonely teenage boy who had thought that he had – at last- found someone who knew his ugly secret and accepted him anyway. Suddenly, happiness was not just possible but **there**, right within his reach.

He had wanted so badly to show the girl that he wanted her too, that he would accept her in the same way that she accepted him, and that he was still a man despite his curse. Even if his parents had arranged the engagement, he would be hers willingly (_unlike Ranma, that undeserving S.O.B. who was just too STUPID to appreciate his luck)_.

Then, of course, the illusion was shattered. The "fiancée" Ryouga had tried to take in his arms had turned out to be Ranma in a silly disguise. Both he and Ranma were deeply embarrassed by that episode, and neither of them had mentioned it since.

Till now. How dare Ranma bring this up, in front of Akane no less, and ridicule it! Ridicule **HIM**.

Familiar, long-unspoken words burst from Ryouga's mouth as he launched himself towards his rival, all benevolent thoughts forgotten. "DIE, RANMA!"

_(And he snaps!)_ It was the moment Ranma was waiting for. He allowed himself a nanosecond of satisfaction before the heart of ice took over.

Akane realized what Ranma was up to as soon she recognized the strange expression on his face. Only one thing explained that peculiar mix of intense focus and detachment. (_Of course, the spiral! The one technique that doesn't draw power from the strength of the user.)_

The Dragon's Heavenly Ascension Wave was the formal, long-winded name of the Amazon technique. Cologne had taught it to Ranma when he had lost his strength to Happosai. Even after he had regained his power, Ranma continued to use the technique. He had refined, revised and employed it in ways that had probably never occurred to the ancient Amazons. He had made the move his own. It was a good thing, too, because the Hiryu Shoten Ha had saved him and Akane many times.

Ranma's control was nearly perfect as he dodged Ryouga's infuriated blows, weaving the circles that were smaller and tighter with each step. To the anxious woman that watched, it was almost deja vu. Only, the first time the rivals had done this, Ranma had taken several hits. Though weak, Ranma had managed back then to stay in the spiral.

This time, Akane knew that Ranma couldn't afford to get hit, not even once. Then it occurred to her - **this** was why Ranma had shown up as a girl. He needed the extra speed, and the smaller form was a harder target.

And Ryouga was so angry that he couldn't see that he was being led into, or maybe he didn't care ...

_(Kami, Ryouga's almost dead center!) _It had taken mere seconds. Akane's eyes widened. She had never seen the spiral this focused before. The waves of chi were like claws poised to tear into its intended victim.

"HIRYU -" A wind sprang up around them as the coils of the dragon tightened around the opponents.

"No! Ranma, STOP!" Akane screamed, but her voice was lost in the rising wind. Akane had seen Ryouga in the aftermath of this attack. Although he had recovered quickly then, he had been terribly hurt. (_And that spiral hadn't looked half as bad as this!)_

Ranma dimly heard Akane shouting his name, but it was too late. His fist was already locked into the uppercut that was the crux of the Dragon's Heavenly Ascension Wave. (_You lose, Ryouga.)_ "-SHOTEN HA!"

* * *

"RYOUGA!" Even as the artificial tornado generated by the Hiryuu Shoten Ha blurred the fighters from her sight, Akane was running forward. (_If Ryouga gets hurt, it'll be my fault!)_

She paused just at the edge of the whirlwind. As the winds generated by the spiral lapped at her hair, she tried to remember what Ranma had taught her about the Dragon Heavenly Ascension Wave. (_Don't add to the hot chi.)_ A few years ago, Ranma had had the idea that a thin shield of cold chi **might** protect Akane from the worst of the wave. The idea was not to resist the winds, but to ride them without taking too much damage.

He did not ask her to form a heart of ice – her temperament was too volatile for that – only a focal point of calm. The effect was supposed to be a malleable aura of chi that surrounded her body.

Of course it didn't exactly work out that way. It had amused Ranma to no end that the shield his wife formed looked disconcertingly like her battle aura. Akane never told him that she had used cold anger to focus her concentration. (_But that was training. This is real, and we never generated a spiral even half as large as this!)_

She shook her head. You couldn't have doubts when you stepped into the spiral. She took a few seconds to spot Ryouga – there, that yellow and black speck! – and focused. In the second that the shield formed, Akane's thoughts cleared and Ranma's instructions rang clearly in her mind. She took one step, and another. (_You can't fight the wind, Akane. Let it take you and -) _

Akane suppressed the urge to struggle as the wind buffeted her. Then it was lifting her off her feet and into the sky. (_But you can't give yourself up to it either, Akane, or it'll carry you off and shake you to pieces. This is where that brute strength of yours'll come in handy. You have to find the pattern that will allow you to move within the spiral.)_ 'Easier said than done,' she thought wryly, as she tried to maneuver towards Ryouga. It was a little bit like swimming, she reflected, without the danger of drowning. (_Or can you drown from too much air?) _

Akane made her way carefully, aware that one wrong move could send her plummeting to the ground or trap her in the spinning vortex. Her shield blunted the scoring sharpness of the spiral, but not much more. It did not make moving through gale-proportion winds easy. For that, Akane had to rely on her strength. Ranma, she knew, would handle it differently. He could move through the spiral, if not exactly with ease then with the grace of an experienced skydiver. Instinctively, he would maneuver his body to ride the winds. But then, as he pointed out, he **knew** the spiral; it was, after all, his "dragon."

Akane did not have Ranma's instinctive knowledge, only her own grit, determination and power. So Akane forced one arm out against an unseen wall of violent air and then another, mimicking the motions of swimming. It was one of the most grueling physical feats she had ever done, because every second she was pitting herself against forces that kept shifting around her. The wind kept threatening to throw her down or away.

It seemed an age before she got near the center of the huge vortex, and near its intended victim.

"Akane?" Ryouga's voice was weak with disbelief. He was in a bad spot, right inside a mean funnel of wind. His face was bruised, and where his shirt or pants were torn whiplash cuts trailed blood. Akane could tell at a glance that Ryouga was close to passing out. That he was conscious at all was a testament to how tough he was.

Quickly, before the wind could draw him away from her, Akane grabbed his arm. "Ryouga, you have to stay awake!" she shouted.

Unexpectedly, he tried to shrug her off. "Let me go. Dangerous ... you shouldn't ... it's okay ... I've ... done this before ..." With each word, Ryouga's voice grew fainter.

"Stop that!" Akane exclaimed in alarm. Kami knew how long they had before the chi-driven tornado collapsed and spat them out! And how hard would it throw Ryouga? In her mind she saw Ryouga falling, hitting the ground hard - and it would be her fault again. (_NO! I won't let it happen!)_

Ryouga's eyes closed. Akane shook him roughly. "Wake up! Listen to me! I'm going to draw you nearer into the center, do you understand? You have to arrow your body down, keep your hands at your sides. You have to help me, Ryouga, or we're **both** done for!"

Without waiting for an answer, Akane tugged Ryouga towards her. To her relief, he followed her instructions and the wind loosened its grip on him just enough to allow her to do it. It still felt like she was hauling a boulder on a wildly rocking boat, but at least there was a chance. **If** she could get Ryouga near the center, where the winds weren't so punishing ... if they could ride the winds when the funnel collapsed ... if she could find a safe spot to land ... (_Some chance._)

Not that the odds mattered. Akane had laid that fear aside as well. It was irrelevant that every muscle in her body ached, that her arms felt close to breaking as she strained to move Ryouga, that she would be a pretty mass of bruises when this was all over.

Akane was wholly committed to her cause, and, in times like these, stubborn as hell. Around her, the malleable blue aura coalesced until it shone like a beacon in the sky.

And that was when Ranma saw her. There was no mistaking that flare of blue, so painfully bright against the blackness of the whirlwind. (_Shimatta!)_ He ran forward, shouting her name. "Akane!" Fear gripped his heart. He had unleashed a dragon powerful enough to overwhelm Ryouga. If Akane's shield faltered, it would tear her to pieces!

He'd barely taken five steps when he saw something that chilled his heart. The base of the whirlwind was starting to unravel. In seconds it would leave the ground and then - "AKANE!" (_Oh God, please !)_ "AKANE, WATCH OUT!" Even as he cried out in warning it was too late.

Ranma watched helplessly as the chi-driven tornado launched into the sky, leaving a dozen violent winds scattered behind it. In the chaos, he lost sight of the blue flare that was Akane. Ranma hoped with all his might that it meant she had gotten out, that she was riding one of the leftover winds to safety. (_Unless she lost her shield, which could mean –)_ Ranma shied away from that horrible thought.

Then he saw it, the blue light shining near the tail-end of the funnel that was getting further and further away. Ranma leapt and sprinted after it. He knew exactly where it was headed.

The dragon was taking his wife and his rival towards the dojo.

* * *

Finally! Yes, me too. Feels like I've been writing this chapter forever.Geez, Rekingling even made it to the Unfinished Business list. Hey, Doc, can I get a reprieve now:) 

Yes, Aoi, I am evil. ;) But not intentionally, heh. Conflagration really ends this way.Apologies for the long wait, folks. Hope you understand that if it's a toss-up between work and fanfic-writing, work wins. I'm also not posting any sections that don't at least halfway satisfy me. That wouldn't be fair to any of us. This chapter has been hard, but your reviews kept me going. Thanks, Chelsea, everyone!

Hey, Cat, good to have you back! I always look forward to your reviews.

Ryuu, good one! Just don't overdo it. :) You never know which teacher's been taking up japanese in his spare time ...

Patty-chan, nope, appreciative words never hurt me. ;D Such kind words, too, thank you! Thanks also to everyone who gave Rekindlinggood and constructivereviews. :)

Kat, thanks for pointing out what shimatta means. I agree that communication is important. That's probably why I ended up writing that 3 a.m. breakfast scene and the flashback here - it's a glimpse into how Ranma Akane talked before the accident. IMHO, though, communication is something you have to work at everyday (particularly in Ranma and Akane's case) and one of the themes of this story is what happens when that communication breaks down. Having your other asking you to help him kill himself might also put a damper on things...

Terpischore, sorry for making you wait for your Christmas present. ;) Thanks for the encouraging review, it really made my day! Oh, and feel free to point out the rough parts.

Doc, thanks for putting Rekindling on your faves list. :) Sorry for the long wait.

About Ranma's reaction when he overheard Ryouga and Akane's conversation in Chapter 3 (I already explained this to Cat, but here's the gist): First, Ranma's convinced and furious that Ryouga is chasing his wife. Second, remember that Ranma himself is plagued by self-doubt at this time; he thinks that Akane deserves someone better than him in his current state. So it's not so much that Akane has or hasn't shown signs of running away with Ryouga, it's that a (small) part of Ranma thinks that she should or, worse, that she might. Either way, it's driving Ranma a little nuts.

For those who think Ranma Akane are acting OOC, please remember that this is years into the future. Unfortunately, they still don't communicate very well. Also, Akane's recurring dream about Ranma's seppuku is just that - it's not meant to be an accurate depiction of ritual suicide.

Rough translation of Japanese words used in this fic:

Baka -fool, idiot, and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma  
Kaishoku - the "second" in traditional seppuku. His/her job was to cut off the samurai's head before the latter "dishonored" himself by showing too much pain  
Kimi - you (used by a husband to his wife). Ex. "Kimi no kawaii"  
Kuso - a swear word; roughly equivalent to "shit""Ittai koko wa doko da!" - "Where on earth am I now!" Ryouga's cry when he's lost and frustrated about it.  
Otousan - Father  
Oyaji - a less respectful way of saying father; usually translated as "Pop" in the anime  
Shimatta - "Damn it!"  
Shoji - sliding doors, like the one at the Tendo dojo  
Yamero- "Enough!" or "Stop (it)!" 


	5. Ashes

Ranma company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare below is mine. CC welcome. First fanfic warning applies. This is the second to the last chapter in Rekindling. Here goes ...

Words in (_italics_) are thoughts. Entire paragraphs in italics are usually flashbacks.

**REKINDLING A FLAME  
****by: Skywatch**

**  
PART FIVE: ASHES**

The whirlwind did not toss them into the dojo, as Akane had feared. At the last second, it veered towards the koi pond and dangerously close to the house. With the last of her remaining strength, Akane wrenched herself and Ryouga free from the tail of the twister.

An errant wind caught them just as the last of the whirlwind slammed into the side of the house, scraping part of a wall away. Akane thankfully took advantage of the wayward current of air to cushion their fall. That and the last of her shield protected her, and a by-now-unconscious Ryouga, from more serious injury.

Ranma got to the house just in time to see Akane tenderly setting Ryouga down on the ground. All the fight went out of him as he watched his wife cradle Ryouga's battered form. It was over. Akane had chosen, and it wasn't him. (_I've lost._) In a fight that had meant just about everything.

Akane sensed Ranma's presence behind her just as she finished putting a makeshift pillow (a folded sheet that had blown in from someone's laundry line) under Ryouga's head.

She shut her eyes. She was ill-prepared for this confrontation. Now that the urgency was gone, the effects of fighting the chi-driven tornado were setting in. Akane was bone-tired and lightheaded from her battle with the winds.

That didn't change the fact that it was time to end this. She hadn't expected Ranma to take the duel so far; she couldn't let Ryouga get hurt. Unsteadily, she got to her feet. But when she turned to face her husband, she showed none of the weakness she felt. He only saw the strange mix of determination and fear in her eyes.

Akane stepped towards him. (_He deserves the truth._) "It's not what you think, Ranma." She swallowed. "There are things you should know."

And so Akane, after nearly a year of subterfuge, finally, haltingly, told Ranma the truth. And watched in grief as it destroyed all of the trust between them.

_Akane skidded into a low crouch. The small explosive packs thrown by her opponent sailed over her head and exploded harmlessly behind her._

"_You've gotten better," her rival said almost approvingly. "Good! This is going to be interesting."_

"_It doesn't have to be like this," Akane entreated even as she assumed a defensive stance. "We don't have to fight. Ranma and I made a decision. You could respect that. Of all people, I thought you might."_

_Ukyou laughed and drew out her battle spatula. "Think again, sugar. Maybe if you fought fair, but you didn't. He lives with you, gets your dojo if he marries you, goes to the same college, and both his parents recognize your claim. You had all the advantages, Akane."_

"_Riiight." Akane rolled her eyes; she couldn't help it. "We were foisted on each other, nearly killed each other, and got thrown into all sorts of situations where other people tried to kill us. And I'm sorry, Ukyou, but if Ranma threw half the insults he regularly uses on me your way, you'd probably hit him harder than I ever did."_

"_Then why get married!" Ukyou nearly screamed the question. Her grip on her battle spatula was bone-knuckle white. _

_Akane sensed that the okinomiyaki chef was on the verge of either breaking into tears or launching another attack. She tried to marshal her thoughts. She really didn't want to fight Ukyou. "Because -"_

"_Because I love her."_

_Ranma seemed to materialize from out of nowhere. Before either girl could move, he was between them. He didn't even assume a fighting stance. He just stood in front of Akane, head bent, eyes flitting between the ground and his best friend, a picture of abject contrition. "I'm sorry, Ucchan, but if there's anyone you should beat up, it's me. My family owes you. I owe you. But Akane never did anything to deserve this."_

"_She stole you from me!" Ukyo accused._

_That seemed to touch a nerve. Ranma's eyes jerked up and held hers. "I was never yours."_

"_Ranma." There was a mild reproach in the way Akane murmured his name. (Careful, this girl's hurting.)_

"_I'm sorry," Ranma said more softly, but firmly, "but it's true. I was never Shampoo's, Kodachi's, my dad's or anyone else who wanted to own me. I'm my own person, and I will always be. I'm sorry," he repeated, "but there were times you forgot that, too."_

_His charge, the truth of it, stung Ukyou so badly that her eyes began to blur with near-tears. But she didn't let go of her weapon. "And Akane? Is she so perfect?"_

_Ranma nearly laughed, would've if the situation weren't so serious. "Far from it. Akane is the same way, which is why this whole arranged engagement was so hard for us. There was no advantage, Ucchan. If they'd had a little sense, our fathers would've realized that forcing us was the worst possible thing they could've done. Akane tried to push me away. I did the same thing. It was hard, and somewhere along the way we almost died." For the first time since he'd come, Ranma glanced at the short-haired girl who had inched forward and by now was nearly beside him._

"_Akane," he continued, and this time he seemed to addressing her as much as the okinomiyaki chef, "is proud and stubborn. If I had gone with you, she wouldn't have come after me, tried to stop me ..." his piercing gaze swung back "... or do what you're doing now, Ukyou."_

_Not Ucchan. Ukyou. Maybe it was a mere slip of the tongue, but that one utterance spoke volumes to the okinomiyaki chef about how Ranma felt right now. About her ambush of Akane. About her. The battle spatula dropped from Ukyou's nerveless hands. Unable to say another word, she whirled around and fled, tears spilling down her cheeks._

"_Ucchan!" Ranma called after his friend, all concern now. He started to go after her._

"_Wait, Ranma." Akane looked down and carefully, respectfully, picked up Ukyou's spatula. "Maybe you should give her some space. She needs it, I think. I ... know in her place I would."_

"_I should've gotten to her, talked to her sooner!" Ranma berated himself. "I tried to find her as soon as we got back, but the news spread so fast."_

_Akane couldn't think of anything to say that would make him feel better, so she didn't. She took his hand and squeezed it lightly with her free one to let him know that she sympathized. To tell the truth, Ukyou's actions had hurt her, too. It smarted to know that in a choice between the friendship that had developed between them since high school and one last desperate chance to claim Ranma, Ukyou had chosen another chance at Ranma, no matter how doubtful. _

_Akane wondered if that would ever change. She handed the spatula to Ranma, and they began walking together, heading home._

_After a few seconds, Ranma asked, "Did she ...?"_

"_Not really. I don't think her heart was in it." Akane glanced at him uncertainly. "That was the first time I heard you talk like that."_

_Ranma gave a little embarrassed shrug. "I thought about what I would say to her. It didn't go the way I planned. I wish I hadn't said some of that stuff, but seeing her pull that spatula on you ... I dunno, it just burned me."_

"_Did you, um, mean it?" This time it was Akane's turn to look embarrassed._

_Ranma stopped in his tracks and stared at her incredulously. "Of course! I just proposed to you a couple of days ago. Did you forget already?" he huffed._

"_Not that!" Akane felt herself coloring. "The other stuff. I mean, it seemed important to you that I wouldn't do what Uk- what the others did."_

"_Oh." Ranma began walking again. When he thought about it, there was one day in particular that stuck out in his mind. It was the day he was in a girl-crazy daze from the old freak's aphrodisiac bandage, and Ukyo and Shampoo had fought for the right to, what exactly? Trick him into signing a marriage certificate. Then Akane had come along, butting into the fight as usual, and he would never forget what she'd said. "But that's so pointless!" she'd cried. "What about how Ranma feels?"_

_Akane was the only who had ever asked._

_'No,' he thought, 'Akane would never take advantage of me.' It wasn't in her. Maybe it was her form of honor. Shyly, he reached for her hand. "Yeah, it is. I trust you, 'Kane." And he grinned as she smiled._

The ghost of that day hovered over them now.

In a voice that wasn't quite steady, Akane told Ranma everything. The words spilled out in a nervous torrent that roughly outlined what she had been doing for a year. In her hurry she was leaving a lot of things out, but once more she felt like she had little choice.

As the flurry of words hit him, Ranma's expression went from disbelief to chagrin to indignation and then to something that Akane had been dreading, but had been expecting.

Fury. Absolute and unforgiving.

Tentatively, she reached out and touched his forearm, instinctively noting how rigidly tense he held himself, how tightly the corded muscles stood out.

"Ranma, I'm sorry."

He jerked away from her. For the first time, he realized he felt nothing at her touch - not embarrassment, not desire, not even affection. What Akane had done, the coldblooded, everyday cruelty of it, had taken everything Ranma had thought true about their relationship and ripped it to shreds.

"You ... you tricked me," he said thickly. "I was ready to hurt him," he continued, his voice rising to match the great anger that washed over him. He had been willing to fight all-out for a lie. He had resorted to methods that were distasteful and degrading for the chance to win.

"You used me, used our friends, put me through the worst HELL for almost a year! WHY?" he demanded. "So you could have your gravity-defying husband back, your Heir to the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts! I would've expected this from Nabiki, but you - !"

He broke off, his voice shaking with rage. "Well, guess what, Akane? I'm back, but I don't want you anywhere near me. I don't care how it's done, but everything between us is over!"

"You're back," she repeated in a whisper, as if it should mean something. "Ranma -"

But he was deaf to the plea in her voice. "Keep away from me," he demanded coldly. "I'm warning you, Akane." His fist coiled and for the first time in the nine years since they'd met he looked like he was going to hit her for real, with the kind of blow he reserved only for his enemies. "Everything between us is over. I don't trust you. I don't want anything to do with you!"

In five bounds, he was over a wall and away.

Akane sank to the ground. "Hai, I ... understand."

And she did. She had betrayed him in the worst possible way. Ranma, so careful, so self-contained, had slowly opened himself up to her over the years. And she had used that precious knowledge to manipulate him. Ranma would find it unforgivable.

If only the need hadn't been so dire, and the time given to her so short. (_I should've found another way!_) To be fair, she had tried. But with his death wish hanging over her head, she simply hadn't been able to think of anything else that would work in time.

(_From the beginning I knew this would happen. I guess I do finally understand him._) This was the other thing she had feared all along, the price she had to pay: Ranma was gone from her forever.

But he was alive, and she had fulfilled her oath.

"I'm sorry, Ranma." She bent her head, but the tears wouldn't come. This was a sorrow too deep for tears. It numbed her mind.

After awhile, she picked herself up to tend to Ryouga.

* * *

When Ranma came back two days later, she was gone. He watched the house for awhile to make sure, but everything was quiet. From the outside, it was as if nothing had happened.

It was a relief. He had been ready to bust in, grab his things and leave without so much as a word to her, but this made it easier. Now he could take his time, decide what to leave and what to take with him. He might even stay for a few days, make arrangements for the dojo's students until everything was settled. He supposed **she** would eventually continue the classes. After all, she had already taken over the classes after the accident.

But if she did return, he'd be out as fast as he could. Maybe he'd crash at the clinic for another couple of days ...

_Doctor Tofu looked pleased as he examined the latest x-rays of his most interesting patient. It was truly remarkable, practically a miracle. Ranma was a very lucky man. _

_So he smiled at the familiar redhead who burst in. Until he noticed the disheveled appearance and the bruises. "Ranma, what in the world -?"_

"_Did you know?" the pigtailed girl demanded._

"_What happened?" Tofu got to his feet in alarm. He knew the signs of a scrap; he just couldn't believe it. Surely even Ranma wouldn't be so foolish as to fight in his condition?_

"_DID YOU KNOW!" The shout reverberated in the small room._

"_Know what?" Tofu asked a bit impatiently. It was starting to sink in that yes, with Ranma, it was highly possible._

"_About Akane! About what she's been doing!" Ranma spluttered._

_The doctor looked at his patient calmly. "Tell me about it."_

_So Ranma did. Talking about it drained him. Afterwards, he was almost pliant when Tofu-sama pointed him to a hot shower, and gave him some spare clothes that Tofu kept around for his gender-changing patients (the clinic was a favorite stopover for hot water)._

_Afterwards, Tofu served tea and some food. To Ranma's own surprise, he finished it all. About Akane, Tofu only said, "I see. That explains a lot of things," and muttered something about needing to talk to Kasumi._

_When the phone rang, and Tofu told him he needed to make a house call, Ranma asked, "Ryouga?"_

_Tofu nodded. "He's conscious and insisting that he's alright, but Akane wants to be sure."_

"_Don't take this the wrong way, doc, but I don't want to know," Ranma said evenly. He was relieved that Ryouga was okay, but right now he didn't even want to hear that other name. "I guess I'll be going."_

_The older man looked surprised. "Why? If it's as Ryouga says, then I won't need to bring him in. Even if I do, there's no need for you to see him. There's a spare room right now, if you're interested. As your doctor, I strongly advise you to rest. Spend a few nights here if you need to."_

"_I'd rather n-"_

"_Ranma." There was a firm edge to Tofu's voice, something that Ranma hadn't heard before. "I don't know what foolishness led to this, but I want to make sure it doesn't result in anything permanent. We worked hard to get you this far. The last thing I want is for you to aggravate some unseen injury. I would appreciate it if you stayed at least overnight."_

_The thought of a nice clean bed was not unappealing. Besides, even Ranma didn't want Tofu annoyed at him. The pigtailed youth shrugged. "Alright."_

(_Well I guess she's really not here._) With the relief was a tinge of disappointment that Ranma quickly squelched. (_Now where did I put that key?_) Preoccupied, the pigtailed martial artist almost didn't notice the heavily tinted black car that entered the street ... until it sped up and swerved to hit him.

There was nowhere to go to, nothing to duck behind. Nerima had narrow streets that barely accommodated cars at all. As the vehicle picked up speed and careened towards him, Ranma instinctively did the only thing that would get him out of the way in time. He leapt high, tucking his legs so they wouldn't snag the rushing car's roof.

A few seconds later he landed safely on the road, short of breath.

Behind him, the car screeched to a halt at the end of the street. Ranma whirled around and watched it closely. He wanted to be ready if the driver decided to reverse.

Instead, rear lights flickered on and off as the driver applied the parking brake and switched the engine off. The door on the driver's side swung open. Shapely legs in skirt and heels appeared.

Ranma's eyes narrowed as the driver emerged. "Nabiki, what the hell do you think you're doing!" Anyone else, he would've beaten up immediately for that stunt, but this girl he owed. It was Nabiki who had insisted that he and Akane be insured. And although it was sweet, maternal Kasumi who had come to the hospital everyday to help them out in the first weeks of the accident, it was the practical sister who had taken care of the initial financial and health care arrangements. Akane at the time had been too distraught to handle them.

Nabiki acted as if she hadn't just tried to run him over. She coolly looked him up and down from behind a pair of dark sunglasses. "I guess it's true then, you do have your abilities back."

"Surprised?" Ranma grated, not really believing it. Nabiki had been in and out of the country for most of the year on a series of business trips, but that didn't mean she hadn't been in on Akane's scheme.

"Actually, I am. I wouldn't have bet on it last winter. I suppose I really should be impressed." In spite of the cold, the older girl was the picture of nonchalance in her tailored business suit and fall coat. She leaned into her car, pulled out a thin folder and shut the door. "You look a little peaked, Saotome. What's the matter, lose a fight?"

"I never lose," Ranma muttered automatically.

"Funny, that's what Akane said, too."

(_So she is in on it._) Not that it surprised Ranma. Nabiki always had her fingers in everything. "Just what is this about, Tendo? Lost a bet? Did you back the wrong guy?" he sneered.

She didn't rise to his bait. "Moi? Unlike some people, I learn from my mistakes. I haven't backed Ryouga against you since that first fight. I haven't bet against you in years, Saotome."

"I'm flattered," Ranma stated indifferently. "Now if you don't mind, I have things to do."

Nabiki shrugged. "Suit yourself. Personally, I'd rather not do this at all. But Akane wanted this done fast, and in this family paperwork means you have to deal with me."

Ranma glanced at the folder in her hand. "Divorce papers?" (_So soon? But ..._) Had Akane been planning to divorce him all along?

Was it his imagination or did Nabiki stiffen? "Not even I can work that fast," she replied laconically enough. "We'll get to those soon enough. No, these are the papers transferring the dojo to you."

It was the last thing he expected. "The ... what?"

"The dojo," Nabiki repeated impatiently. "Should I spell it out? Akane has convinced our father to cede the house and the dojo to you. For a time, of course, not permanently. The rest of the family agreed." Except for me, she might as well have added. Her displeasure was obvious.

He didn't like the idea much, either. "I don't want it," he said flatly. "I never wanted it, not even when we were fiancées." It was true. Ranma lived for the Art, and he never thought he needed a training hall to practice it. It was good to have one, sure, but not at the price their fathers had been demanding. (_At least, not until Akane and I were willing to - but that's all in the past now.)_ Besides, to be the master of the Musabetsu Kakutou – that was for him, but in his mind the dojo would always be Akane's. "I don't want anything from her."

Nabiki didn't react to his statement right away. She took off her sunglasses, folded it carefully and slipped it into a coat pocket, and then, "I guess Akane was right. You are a jerk."

The simple insult infuriated him. "Dammit, Nabiki! What do you know about it, huh?" he challenged. "Maybe you should talk to your sister some more, get her to tell you about the wonderful things she did to me!"

"Oh I have, believe me," Nabiki shot back. "Akane's gotten an earful from all of us already. But you haven't exactly been 'wonderful' either, have you?" She raised a hand before he could protest.

"Since you asked, let me tell you what I do know, Saotome." She began ticking off her fingers. "I know that you made her promise to kill you. Oh yes, that finally came out. But let's go on, shall we? I know that you shut yourself off from her and most everyone else after the accident. I know you've been sleeping in separate rooms after a hell of an argument about six months ago."

She paused for breath. She was coming to the part that made her angry, and as much as Nabiki prided herself on control, some of that seeped through. "I know that my sister hasn't had a decent night's sleep in months. You are aware of that, aren't you? How Akane dreams constantly that she's your _kaishoku_, with the unenviable job of cutting off your head at just the right moment? It's a recurring nightmare she's been having since you made her take that godawful, stupid vow."

Ranma flushed. (_Akane was having nightmares?_) "She told you this?" he asked. For the first time, a tinge of uncertainty entered his voice.

"Not all. You forget whose house this is," Nabiki replied matter-of-factly. "And before you start screaming at me, let me tell you that I installed the systems in the main bedroom to monitor my father, not you. I neglected to remove them when I moved out, and I couldn't exactly come back for them after you guys moved in."

"You've been spying on us!" Ranma didn't know whether he was more offended or horrified.

Nabiki shook her head. "No, I told you I left the system alone. But I was able to retrieve the tapes yesterday, when both of you were out. And it's not like you think; the tapes aren't on every minute. They're activated only by sounds of a certain pitch and volume – shouts, fighting, loud incoherent sobbing. They stop in ten seconds if the sounds aren't repeated." For an instant her gaze shifted, became faraway. "Otousan wasn't exactly stable for awhile. We were ... worried."

It was probably the only explanation he was likely to get. (_Not that it matters anymore._) Or did it? If he and Akane were through, who cared what Nabiki had on tape?

"There's really just one thing I wanted to know, Saotome. Why did you ask Akane to kill you?"

He reared back from her effrontery. "That's none of your business!"

She was probing too closely at a wound that was still raw, a sore thing that wasn't far below the surface. Ranma only had to close his eyes to summon the shadow of the unrelenting despair that had gripped him after the accident. The edges of that shadow brushed up against him sometimes. At night he'd fall asleep and dream of the accident - falling into the suffocating, cruel ice – and its more terrible aftermath, waking up to a world where everything he had ever known had been snatched away from him. At times the dreams felt so real that he'd wake up screaming.

That was what the big argument had been about. He had jolted awake, hysterical with fear (_ohmygod what if I try and I can't move again can't feel again?_) and of course Akane had woken, too, full of concern for him. He had hated that even more, that she had seen him not just weak but afraid. And because it was always easier for him to be angry than afraid, he had picked a fight and gotten her out of their room.

There was no way he was going to tell that to Nabiki, of all people.

Only, she wasn't taking no for an answer. "The HELL it isn't!" she snapped back fiercely, using the gaijin swear word for emphasis. You didn't spend all that time abroad without picking up colorful bits of the language. "You're a jerk, Saotome, but when did you become a sadist? What were you thinking! Making **Akane**, who loves you more than life, promise to kill you?"

Her staccato questions stung. "This has got nothing to do with that, Nabiki!" Ranma denied fiercely. "At least, not all of it. Akane fulfilled her vow the minute I got back on my feet." That was the moment Ranma believed that he was going to get better, that he would be able to practice the Art again, and then, after that day in the dojo with Akane ...

"But that wasn't enough for her!" he snarled. "I had to be back to **this**, to the Ranma who could take on all comers. She manipulated me, used Ryouga, Ukyou and who knows who else to egg me on! And kami knows how she got Ryouga to fight me. SHE BETRAYED ME!" he lashed out. It was the crux of his fury and he didn't care who knew now. "She turned our lives together into a lie!"

The older woman suddenly straightened, her mind zeroing in on one particular phrase. Her eyes pinned the martial artist with a laser glare so focused that it brought his tirade abruptly to a halt.

Ranma realized that, although he had often seen Nabiki annoyed and irritated, he had never seen her this ... upset before. Now **this** was the Nabiki who had tried to run him over.

"You fool," she said succinctly. "The both of you. Fools. Have you TOLD her, Saotome? That you considered the vow fulfilled?" she asked in a tone that rose with each word. "Because my sister's been going through HELL for a year because of you!"

"Yeah right," he scoffed. "What're you saying, that Akane treated me like dirt for a whole year for my own good? That she did this all for me?" And then, as Nabiki stood there, just looking at him, he realized that that was exactly what she meant. (_No. No way._)

"You're free to draw your own conclusions." Nabiki slipped her sunglasses back on, and suddenly the cool control was back. Her tone became calmer, if no less devastating. "You should know that Akane told Otousan, your parents, Ryouga and Ukyou, but that's all. Everyone else in Nerima thinks she's a monster for being so mean to you. No one on this street talks to her anymore, did you know that? Not even the neighbors we've known since we were kids. She played her part so well that I only started suspecting a month ago, and I only understood when I found out about the oath. Incidentally, no one outside Ryouga, Ukyou and the family know about that."

"So, congratulations, Saotome. Not only do you get the dojo and the house for a good part of your life, your reputation as a fearless warrior is intact. You have to admit my sister did a thorough job. Too bad she destroyed her reputation in the process."

Her sweeping words felt like a trap closing around him. Ranma looked away. "I don't believe you."

"Suit yourself." In a gesture that was almost casual in its contempt, Nabiki threw the folder of papers at his feet. "You're so angry, so eager to have her out of your life? That's fine with me. Personally, I think it's best. But if I were you, I'd start imagining what it would be like, this life you've chosen without Akane."

The woman turned and calmly walked back to her car. In seconds, the stately black vehicle was speeding away.

As the car disappeared from sight, Ranma stooped down and picked up the folder. He opened it briefly, but his mind was still whirling from Nabiki's onslaught and none of it made sense to him. It might as well have been a jumble of words.

Giving up, he fished for his house keys and found them this time. The heavy wooden gate swung open and he stepped through.

For a moment the pigtailed martial artist stood staring at the shoji leading to the house, rooted to the spot. Doubts swirled in his mind. (_It's Nabiki, ya can't trust her. But ... why would she lie? There's nothing in it for her._) He shook his head. He needed to hear from someone he could trust. There was one person who might tell him the truth.

The minute he was in the house, he reached for the phone.

"Kuonji Okinomiyaki."

"Hi, Ucchan, it's Ranma. There's something I haveta ask you," he said. "I need to know if Akane -" He faltered. How to ask without giving too much away? "Did Akane ever tell you anything about ... an agreement we had about my condition?" He heard the okinomiyaki chef catch her breath, could almost see her hesitate.

"Ucchan," he repeated, and this time his tone was urgent, "Akane's gone. I fought Ryouga and I won, do you understand? I ... Akane told me about some things and I ... sent her away." The gasp on the other side was audible. "Please, I need someone to tell me what happened."

So she did. Ranma listened with growing horror.

* * *

Ranma stumbled across the hall, to the room that had been Akane's room. Although they had moved to the master bedroom after Soun had gone to live with Genma and Nodoka, they had kept Akane's old room mostly as it was. Even the duck was still on the door. They used it as a study and sometimes as a dressing room, but mostly it was still Akane's private space. It had been easy for her to move back in there after the night he had thrown her out ...

Her room was empty. It possessed a neatness that said, better than anything, that no one lived here anymore. The bedcovers were folded with a precision that would've made Kasumi proud.

On the simple desk Akane had used since childhood laid two pages of paper held down by a set of keys. Ranma recognized the cutesy keychain immediately - her house keys.

He sat down on her chair and immediately a decade's worth of memories assailed him. How many lessons had they pored over right here, sitting next to each other and pretending that it didn't mean anything?

He remembered how nervous he had been the first time she had invited him in, knowing that he was actually going to stay in Akane's room alone with her, even if it was only to study. She had gotten him to understand algebra and geometry - no mean feat. He'd been amazed then at her patience. He'd thought, fleetingly, that she'd be a great teacher one day. He'd been right.

"_... start imagining that it would be like, this life you've chosen without Akane ..."_

With a hand that quavered a little, Ranma reached for the letter. It had been hastily written. It began with the kanji of his name, with a flourish on the "Ran" syllable as Akane liked to write it:

_Ranma,_

_I hope you see this. If not, I suppose you'll find out what you need to soon enough._

_I've left and I'm not coming back. The dojo is yours. Our fathers always meant for the schools to be united. They were right - the master and the dojo should be together. I know that you probably intended to be the one to leave, but it's done. I called Nabiki before you left. She didn't like it, but you now have a lifetime interest (she'll explain what that means) in the house and the dojo. I've explained to everyone that this is a matter of making amends._

(_The dojo!_) Ranma read that part over. The same disbelief that had greeted Nabiki's announcement earlier went through him again. Akane loved the dojo more than anything else on earth. It had been her sanctuary and protecting it had been one duty she had taken on gladly. How could she do this? Jerkily, he read on.

_Now that Kasumi isn't mad at me anymore, I'll stay with her for awhile. Eventually, I think I will go on a musha-shugyo. There's no reason for you not to stay in Nerima. At least stay until you're fully recovered._

_Please don't get mad at Ukyou and Ryouga. It was my plan. They were only trying to help you. I'm sorry for everything. _

_I hope someday you'll understand. _

_Akane_

Ranma carefully folded the pages. **Kasumi** had gotten mad at her?

"... _she did this alone. She told Otousan, your parents, Ryouga and Ukyou ... but everyone else thought she was a monster ..._"

"You're back."

That had been the last thing he had heard Akane say even as he had been leaping away.

(Oh kami, it WAS the vow.) Nabiki was right.

The pigtailed martial artist got up unsteadily. She had fought everyone on this - her family, her friends, HIM, and she had done it mostly by herself for almost a year. It staggered him.

For him. Then, when he had thrown everything in her face and said the cruelest things he could think of, she had left him her most precious possession. So he'd recover and the Musabetsu Kakutou would continue, even without her.

Suddenly his eyes were stinging. (_No one's ever ...) _She had shown him a depth of love that he had never had from anyone. No wonder he didn't understand it. The world blurred through his tears.

He wasn't going to let her go!

* * *

Akane sat down on a park bench. It was quiet at this time of the day. Most of the students were already home, while folks at work wouldn't be free to leave their offices for another hour. Sometimes Akane went to the park when she needed to think.

It was here that she'd decided on the trip that had nearly gotten Ranma killed. (_If I had known, I would've never ..._) She shivered. 'It's over,' Akane reminded herself.

Everyone was moving on. Ryouga was back on his feet; soon he'd be on his way on another trip. Kasumi and Nabiki were relieved to find out that their baby sister hadn't turned into some vindictive, bitter stranger. Just into a very good liar. Nabiki had been annoyed at being fooled, though, as Akane herself had admitted, Nabiki wouldn't have stayed that way for long if she hadn't been away most of the time. And Ranma, well, he had made what he wanted clear.

(_Ranma ..._)

Akane covered her eyes. (_No, I won't go there again._) Suddenly, she was tired. She had spent the last couple of days busy with what needed to be done. Tending to Ryouga. Telling her family. Convincing them to cede the dojo to Ranma.

Her way of making amends. Akane glanced at her watch. Nabiki said she would drop off the papers today, after asking Akane for the umpteenth time if she was sure. She'd replied that she was. Thinking about it now gave rise to a tight feeling in her chest. The dojo meant a lot to her. By giving it to Ranma, she knew she would never be able to set foot in it again.

(_It's the right decision._) If he had the dojo, Ranma would stay, teach and heal. The School would continue. And Akane would be free to go. She HAD to go. Every day spent in Nerima was like a knife in her heart. Everywhere she turned were reminders of what she had lost.

It was worse at night. There was no mask of daughter, sister, friend to hide behind when she was alone. There was only Akane, who had to live with what she'd done. Lying had only been a small part of it. She had been deliberately unkind, and more. She had bullied and hectored and pushed the right buttons. She had deceived the one person she had sworn to love above all others while he had been at his weakest and most vulnerable. She had fought viciously, and she had unblinkingly used others to further her own ends.

She had done it with the best of intentions. To save Ranma and herself from that awful promise, what could be more necessary, more right? Only, she hadn't reckoned on the price. To lose Ranma's trust and love, yes, she'd known enough to expect that.

But you don't live like that, day after day for hundreds of days, maneuvering everything and everybody around you, and still come out the same forthright girl that you used to be. Akane was beginning to realize that she had done more than betray Ranma.

Along the way, she had lost a part of herself.

She would no longer be "the unsubtle sister", as Nabiki had once called her. She would never be that naïve again, or that trusting. And she could not un-know that Ryouga had loved her, loved her deeply and maybe still did, and for that reason would do what she asked. It didn't matter that his debt over P-chan was repaid in full. Akane still had a hold over the brash, impulsive youth.

She hoped she would never use it. The girl she had been wouldn't have even thought about it. It would be unfair. It would be taking advantage. But the person who was Akane now wasn't a hundred percent sure. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she felt the thought being filed away.

(_NO!_) Akane jerked to her feet, desperate to escape the tainted feeling. (_I'll leave Nerima, go on a long training trip and clear my head. I WILL regain myself. I will regain my ... my honor._) She shut her eyes.

"Akane?"

The girl's eyes flew open. Was her imagination playing tricks on her? In that case, it was affecting her sight, too.

Approaching her was a familiar figure in red and black, striding through a square of dappled sunlight.

"Ra - Ranma?" She couldn't believe it.

The pigtailed martial artist stopped a couple of feet away. He was breathing hard; he'd been running. There was an equally surprised look on his face. Clearly he hadn't expected to find her here.

Then his expression changed, but not to the anger and contempt Akane expected. His glittering blue eyes swept over her with fierce intensity.

She'd seen that look a few times before, but she could hardly credit it now. (_No way._) Instinctively, she stepped back and held her hands out in front of her. "Ranm-"

Too late. Ranma covered the space between them in an instant. In the next breath, his arms were around her and he was kissing her. His lips on hers were hard, insistent, but trying not to be. His embrace was heated, coiled steel.

(_Oh kami._) Akane's trapped palms curled against the familiar warmth of Ranma's chest. In a few seconds she would be lost in this kiss, every thought and resolution she'd made over the last couple of days forgotten.

She couldn't let that happen. With strength she didn't know she possessed, Akane did what she'd never done before. She pulled away.

"What're you doing?" It was supposed to be indignant, but even to her own ears she sounded merely breathless.

Ranma's hands dropped to his sides. The truth was he was almost as astonished by his actions as she was. The sudden and unexpected sight of her had given rise to an impulse that had been irresistible. That Akane had stopped it was not a good sign. He just hoped she'd wait a bit and listen before she decked him.

He smiled weakly. "Sorry bout that. I just ..." Oh wonderful, he had no idea what to say! He'd never been good at this talking stuff. He spotted the bench behind Akane and waved towards it. "Can we sit down?"

To forestall any protest, he went past her and sat on one end of the bench. He waited until she was seated, too, on the other end of course. "Nabiki came by. I – I don't want the dojo, Akane. Not if ..." he took a deep breath, "not without you."

For a long moment she could only stare at him. "Three days ago you hated me."

He winced. "Three days ago I didn't know a lot of things."

"What things?"

"You know." He paused, but she just waited. "Your plan, how badly you took the ... vow," he hesitated. "Your nightmares, how you asked Ryouga and Ukyou for help, kept it a secret from everybody ... I know you did it for me, Akane. I understand that now. I'm sorry it took me awhile to -"

"Ranma," she cut him off gently. "I told you those same things after you and Ryouga fought. Not about the nightmares," she flushed, "but enough. What happened between then and now?" Shrewdly, she guessed, "Did Nabiki say something?"

He flushed. "Well, Nabiki came by and reamed me." Ranma didn't think this was the time to tell Akane about her sister's attempt to run him over. Akane would go ballistic. "But it was only when I talked to Ukyou and read your letter that I realized what a big mess this all was."

He tugged at his pigtail uncomfortably. "Can we just ... forget that this happened, Akane?"

It was so tempting! If he had asked her two days ago, she would've agreed. And it would've been the worst possible thing to do. She'd return and they'd never talk about it. Ranma avoided serious conversations like he dodged her strikes at practice. He'd start acting as if nothing had happened. And she'd follow his example because it was easier to pretend that they were okay than to face up to the fact that there was something deeply wrong with their relationship.

"I ... I can't, Ranma. I'm sorry."

Ranma felt like he'd been hit in the gut. "No. No, Akane ... what're you saying?" This couldn't be! He'd found her, but lose her anyway? "I know you feel ... bad about this, but it's alright now. I forgive you. You were just doing what you had to do."

"Thank you, your forgiveness means a lot to me," she replied softly. "But it doesn't make what I did right." Akane looked down at her tightly clasped hands. "I picked on you. I lied to you. I used people."

"You asked Ryouga and Ukyou to help!" he countered sharply. "That's not 'using.' As for what you did to me, it wasn't pleasant but I understand why. It's like a fight, Akane. You did what you had to," he repeated, "anything goes."

"But that's just it! It wasn't a fight, Ranma," she pointed out. "We're married, we're supposed to be partners. It wasn't supposed to be you against me, or the other way around, with your life at stake!"

Restless now, Akane stood and walked a few steps away. "In every single important fight we've faced, we stood together. Against demi-gods, demons, kidnappers, challengers," she quirked a weak grin, "unreasonable fiancées and hangers-on. I thought we were okay. We've never been one of those quiet couples but I thought, we always came together when it was important. That should be enough." She spread her hands. "So what happened?"

Ranma stood too, genuinely worried now. He had caught a tone in Akane's voice that was utterly serious and intractable. "Akane, what do you want me to say?" he asked outright. "That I'm sorry? That tricking you into taking that oath was stupid and wrong? All right, I'm saying those things now! I admit I was wrong, too. Isn't that enough?"

Akane turned towards him, and her eyes begged him to understand. "What if ... what happens next time?"

"There isn't going to be a next time!" he declared indignantly. Honestly, how stupid did she think he was? If there was one thing he'd learned from this experience, it was that he wasn't invulnerable or immortal. There were times when you shouldn't push your luck, even if you were Ranma Saotome, martial arts incarnate.

"You don't know that!"

"Okay, you're right! I don't!" Ranma's voice rose, roughened by his growing frustration. A part of him had really expected that finding Akane would be hard, talking to her simple. He'd forgive her, she'd forgive him and they'd head home. And why not? It had happened before. Only, it wasn't turning out that way now. "But whatever happens, I know I'm never going to ask you to ... make a promise like that again. I swear."

Akane's eyes narrowed. "Oh you better not, Ranma."

He looked at her closely. (_Oh so that's it._) "You're mad at me," he stated.

"Yes," she affirmed after awhile. The look on her face said she had just realized it herself. "I guess I am."

"I already said I was sorry. I mean it, Akane. I shouldn't have. It was ... low, to trick you like that." The pigtailed youth gazed at her nervously. From the beginning, he'd never felt right about the way he had gotten Akane to promise.

"You don't have to apologize, Ranma," she sighed. "After all, it was my fault."

"What?" He couldn't believe his ears.

"Your accident, the trip, it was my fault. If I hadn't insisted on that skiing trip ..."

(_She's still hung up about that?_) He remembered her saying something similar the first time he'd woken up. "Don't be ridiculous, Akane. I already told you it wasn't your fault."

"But it was! **IT WAS**!" she burst out with surprising vehemence, turning away. "You didn't want to go. 'Nerima's cold enough, why do we have to go somewhere colder?' You asked me that, remember? But I insisted. I wanted to go some place where it was just the two of us, no friends, crazy people, families."

Ranma's senses prickled, like they often did during battle. He was close to something here, his instincts told him. Something else was bothering Akane, something that had colored her actions from the beginning and explained in part what was happening now. Because, he realized, Akane was absolutely convinced that the two of them would not work out, that they couldn't get past this. Whatever it was had shaken her faith in their marriage - in **them**.

But to do that, to find out, he'd have to do something utterly reckless, something he wasn't sure he was brave enough to risk.

He would have to let her go.

"Akane." The martial artist paused, his heart beating wildly. "If you need time to think this through then, alright, I accept that. Maybe I need time, too." He kept his voice calm, reasonable. "But tell me at least - why do you feel so guilty? Why did you want to go on that trip so badly?"

He saw her head dip, and even with her back to him, Ranma was certain that Akane had begun to cry.

The sudden tremor in her voice only confirmed it. "It was our third year anniversary and I thought ... three years is enough, isn't it? To know whether you're going to work out or not. I thought ... our life was settling down ... we'd both matured a lot ... maybe ..." She hesitated.

"Maybe?" he prompted her softly.

"On that trip, Ranma, I wanted to ask ..." The words were difficult, painful, and she struggled to continue. Because Ranma deserved to know this, too. "I wanted to tell you that if ... in case you were ready ... that I was ready, too." She took a deep breath. "To start thinking about ... having a child."

With those words ringing between them, and a last wounded sob, Akane ran away.

Ranma wouldn't, couldn't stop her. (_Me, a dad?_) He stood there, frozen, wide-eyed.

A year ago, Akane had been thinking of starting a family. Their family.

And he had asked her to kill him.

(_Oh kami, what have I done?_)

* * *

Notes:

At this point you might've noticed a couple of things. First, part 5's name has been changed to "Ashes." Second, it doesn't look like Rekindling is going to end here, does it? (Course, I could let it end here, but I get the feeling you guys won't be so happy with that). As I wrote, this chapter got longer and more complicated, and finally it became impossible to squeeze the happy bits in without making them seem like an afterthought (as Goku seems to have foreseen). So, the next chapter, "Flame!" will be the last, except for maybe an epilogue. At least, that's the (new) plan. :-)

Cat: That plotline did occur to me once, very early on. Then I thought, nah, too predictable. Don't worry, things will get better. But you have to wait a bit more.

Nishikaze, lovingeyes, flameraven, goku, meia, oyuki, domie, cherryblossom, r.j.g., fanfic fan: thank you! and yes, Ranma's being a bit of a baka in this chapter, but he realizes it by the end.

Lov3the3vil: The last time I checked, Hearts of Ice was in the process of being revised. There was also part of a chapter 24. I think the HOI on Krista Perry's website is more updated than the HOI posted in not bad. You got a lot of the main points right. As to whether Akane will leave for parts unknown, you have to read the next chapter to be sure. 

Pinku: yours is, without a doubt, one of the most touching reviews I've received for Rekindling. Thank you. I hope you continue to enjoy the story til the end.

Hey, jan: Not quite forever, I hope. ;) As for R and A, I'm afraid things will get worse before they get better (as you see, Ranma did take it the wrong way). At any rate, it'll all finish in the next chapter.

Now how many times do I have to apologize for not updating fast enough?

No, I'm not doing this to torture anyone (really, Doc, rebecca, morgannia, and Naoki, I'm not!). Sumimasen, but honestly it'd be difficult to update faster. If it makes you feel better, some of my favorite fanfics make me wait, too (Hearts of Ice would be the extreme example). I figure if the story's good then it's worth the wait. I hope Rekindling falls in that category. Thanks, Lov3the3vil, for saying that it does.

Phobos, thanks, I try. Some mistakes still slip through, though. Thanks also to Cat (glad you liked that bit about Akane), Shadow, shiomei,ranmakane4ever, lenne and everyone else who wrote in with such nice reviews.

For those who think Ranma Akane are acting OOC, please remember that this is years into the future. Unfortunately, they still don't communicate very well.

Also, Akane's recurring dream about Ranma's seppuku is just that - it's not meant to be an accurate depiction of ritual suicide.

Rough translation of Japanese words used in this fic:

Baka - fool, idiot, and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma

Kaishoku - the "second" in traditional seppuku. His/her job was to cut off the samurai's head before the latter "dishonored" himself by showing too much pain

Kimi - you (used by a husband to his wife). Ex. "Kimi no kawaii"

Kuso - a swear word; roughly equivalent to "shit"

"Ittai koko wa doko da!" - "Where on earth am I now!" Ryouga's cry when he's lost and frustrated about it.

Musha-shugyo - training journey

Otousan - Father

Oyaji - a less respectful way of saying father; usually translated as "Pop" in the anime

Shimatta - "Damn it!"

Shoji - sliding doors, like the one at the Tendo dojo


	6. Flame!

Ranma and company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare below is mine. CC welcome. First fanfic warning applies. Barring an epilogue, this is the last chapter in Rekindling. Here goes ...

Words in (_italics_) are thoughts. Entire paragraphs in italics are flashbacks.

**REKINDLING A FLAME**

**by: Skywatch**

**PART SIX: FLAME!**

(_How do you mend something that's broken?_)

Akane brooded over the small campfire that she'd made. She added a few more twigs and nudged one of the branches. There was a crackling, sparks, and suddenly bright orange flames burst into life.

(_Should you even try? Or should you leave it alone for awhile and hope that it mends on its own?_)

The young woman sat back and sighed. She'd made a mess of training today. She'd done a few katas and exercises, but mechanically, just going through the motions. She couldn't focus, and she knew exactly why.

It was time to go back. The martial artist had promised her family a week, maybe two, no more. Kasumi's time was near and Akane had said that she'd be there. Only then had the Tendos stopped arguing with her.

It wasn't that Akane minded. She was genuinely happy for her sister and she was glad to help out. But going back meant another struggle to get away, and she wasn't looking forward to crossing swords with the formidable combined front that was her sisters and Otousan.

Returning to Nerima also meant ... (_Ranma_). In her heart she knew they would talk again. They hadn't really settled anything that day in the park. Another meeting wasn't only inevitable; it was the right thing to do.

Only she was far from prepared. In these mountains, everything seemed sharper, clearer, and Akane had gained some sense of herself again. But she hadn't come to a decision about her and Ranma, though to be honest he was never far away from her thoughts. At odd times of the day she would catch herself wondering how he was: if he was eating right, if he was taking care of himself and doing his exercises without overdoing it. She smiled faintly. Sometimes her husband could be so reckless.

A restless hour later, Akane gave up and entered her tent. She squirmed into her sleeping bag, shifted around until she was in a comfortable position, and pulled the windproof material close against the chilly night air. In less than a minute the tired woman was asleep and dreaming ...

_A younger Akane bolted from her bed and grabbed her kendo stick. Something had definitely tapped against her window. She glanced at her digital clock. It was way past midnight. Whoever it was definitely meant no good. _(If this is Kodachi again, kami help me, I'm sending her to another plane of existence!) _Irritated beyond belief, she yanked her curtains aside._

_And nearly jumped back in surprise. _

"_Finally! Hey, 'Kane, can you let me in? It's freezing out here!" The pigtailed youth visibly shivered as he swung outside her window._

"_Ranma!" she hissed, glancing around. No family and crazy people around, thank the kami. Akane opened the window and stepped aside so he could swing in. After all, she could hardly let the man she was going to marry turn into a block of ice._

_A freezing gust followed the youth's entrance. "Thanks!" Ranma hurriedly shut the window again. _

"_What were you thinking? Going outside my window on a night like this, and in just a jacket, too." Akane yanked a blanket off of her bed and tossed it to him. _

"_I didn't have time to throw anything else on," her iinazuke explained reasonably. He wrapped the thick blanket around himself. Then, grinning, he suddenly came close and threw his arms around her, cocooning them together in the blanket's woolly warmth. _

"_Ranma!" Akane protested, trying to wriggle away. "What are you doing!"_

"_Trying to spend some alone time with my fiancée," he said gruffly, pulling her closer. "Feels like we haven't in ages." He sighed contentedly. "This is nice."_

_Akane gave up and settled into his arms. This **was** nice, she conceded, turning into Ranma's embrace so she could hug him back. "This is crazy," she whispered halfheartedly. "If Nabiki wakes up -"_

"_She'll have some interesting pictures to add to that video she's going to show at the wedding." Ranma shrugged complacently. "I also thought I'd check on you, in case anyone got crazy ideas," he continued, keeping his tone light.. _

"_I haven't seen Kodachi yet, if that's what you mean." The girl stifled a yawn. "I wish we could just get the wedding over and done with."_

"_You too, huh? I told ya we should've eloped," the pigtailed martial artist quipped. Then he frowned as his fiancée yawned again and visibly drooped in his arms. "Hey, are you falling asleep on me?" he asked indignantly._

"_Sorry," Akane mumbled. "The wedding's in two days and I've been up since early morning, finalizing all sorts of things."_

_Then Ranma said a strange thing. "Guess that means you still want to marry me?" _

_The question, and the faltering way he voiced it, woke Akane right up. "What?" A familiar anxiety welled up in the shorthaired girl. She and Ranma had gone through a lot to get to this point. They could hardly believe that they'd made it, and half the time they still expected fate to throw a monkey wrench in. Was this it? _

_The youngest Tendo stepped back so she could meet the pigtailed youth's eyes. She could tell that something was worrying him. "What is it?"_

_His gaze on her was troubled. "Somebody said something to me today. My life's not normal. And you know better than most that I'm not the easiest person to live with ..." _

"_And I am? My life's 'normal'? Know many girls who fought past hentai hordes on their way to school?" Akane couldn't help cutting in. She was understandably a little steamed. The past weeks had been stressful, packed with a thousand wedding arrangements and last-minute attempts from the most recalcitrant suitors. This was not helping._

"_I know, I know. But have you really thought about it, Akane? It's not gonna be easy."_

"_I – WE - never thought it was going to be easy. Are you having second thoughts, Ranma?" she asked bluntly, doggedly putting her fears aside. If he was having doubts, she wanted to know. "I thought we settled this already. Unless ... do either of us want to end up with someone else? **Is** there someone else?"_

_Ranma's eyes flashed. The answer to all three questions was the same, and had been for a long time now. "NO!" He took a deep breath. "It's just, you once asked me what I wanted but ... Akane, I don't know if anyone ever asked you."_

_For a moment neither of them spoke. _

_Then Akane shook her head. Her eyes softened. "Baka," she murmured affectionately, brushing a stray lock of hair from his face. "Somebody did. **You** did. When you asked me to marry you."_

"_Oh." The tension eased out of the pigtailed martial artist's face and pose. He brightened. _

"_Honestly," Akane huffed in feigned exasperation, "you're probably the only guy in Nerima who'd sneak into his fiancée's room just to talk her out of marrying him." _

"_Oh really?" A light of mischief entered Ranma's eyes. Whether she meant it to or not, Akane's words sounded like a challenge, and he could never turn down a challenge. "Does that mean you **want** me to act like some guy who sneaks into girls' rooms?"_

_He half-expected Akane to playfully knock him away. Or worse, depending on her mood. He was already braced for it. But nothing could have prepared him for the way she looked up and met his gaze, with a sudden tenderness that simmered around the edges and made his mouth go dry. _

"_Will you, Ranma?" the girl asked shyly. "Act like a guy who sneaked in here just to see me?" _

"_Akane?" The pigtailed martial artist swallowed nervously. This was the way it was between them. So many feelings wrapped up in a few words, a gesture, a look, a smile. Love. Affection. Trust most of all, because this was Akane, his Akane, who was so **careful** about these things. _

_He wouldn't have it any other way. _

_He leaned and held her closer, and suddenly he felt he had to say it, the awkward words. "Haven't you figured it out yet? Every time I was in here ... was because I wanted to see you." _

Ranma snapped awake. He sat up and listened. Nothing. The silence around him confirmed that he was alone in the house. Again. He groaned. It was just another dream.

(_Akane ..._) He missed her. He hadn't expected to, not this much. Even before, he and Akane had sometimes spent time apart. He'd be after a cure or some new technique; she'd be off for a few days. But this - this not knowing when or even if (despite Kasumi's assurances) she'd be back, and knowing that even if she did return it wouldn't be to him – it was just plain **hard**.

He rubbed his eyes blearily and checked the clock next to the bed. 5:50 am. He sighed. (_Might as well get suited up for my morning run._) It wasn't like he was going to get more sleep anyway. He never did after a dream like that.

* * *

Two mornings later, Akane walked into a neat and cozy kitchen. "Tadaima! Ohayou, oneechan," she greeted. "How are you feeling today?"

Kasumi smiled at her sister, obviously delighted to have her back. Pregnancy suited the eldest Tendo, gave her even more of a maternal glow, if that was possible. "Good morning, Akane. I'm so happy to see you! How was your training trip? Are you hungry? Breakfast is almost ready. I'd offer you some tea but it's not made yet."

"I'll get it." The short-haired girl found the kettle, washed it and set about making some tea. "You should let me do that, too, you know," she said, as Kasumi bustled around the rest of the food. "I can manage a meal now."

"Thank you, but you know how much I like preparing food. It relaxes me. Maybe in a week or two, after this little one comes along." The older woman beamed as she patted her belly. "That is, if you can stay that long?"

That was the problem with Kasumi, Akane thought wryly. She rarely insisted, never pushed, but just try saying no to her. After all, how do you refuse a pregnant sister's request for assistance, especially if that sister had practically raised you for most of your life? Simple. You don't.

"Of course," Akane conceded defeat with cheerful grace, "I wouldn't miss it for the world. This **is** my first niece or nephew." Kasumi had had the usual check-ups and periodic ultrasound, but in her old-fashioned way she hadn't wanted to be told what the baby's gender was. Nabiki had laid odds that it was a girl, though.

As Akane turned to rummage for some cups and saucers, she could almost see Kasumi's look of relief. Her sisters were not taking her plans of going on a musha-shugyo well. There was no set time for that kind of training journey. It could take weeks, months, sometimes years. In Ryouga's case, it practically defined his life. (_Now there's a point I'm not making to my dad._) The waterworks would be astounding.

Then she caught it, the sense that she was being watched. Quickly, the martial artist whirled towards the window. Nothing. She glanced inquiringly at her sister, who'd been facing the window all along. "Was that ...?"

Kasumi nodded, serene as always. "Oh yes. He passes by every morning. Sometimes he stops and says hello but mostly he just checks to see if you're back. It's very sweet, really."

"Why doesn't he use the front door, like everyone else?" Akane grumbled, but she felt absurdly pleased. For some reason **not** related to Ranma passing by to check on her. (_Riiight._)

"Maybe he senses that you're not ready." Kasumi set the steaming dishes out to cool a bit, and pulled a stool to seat herself. "Are you, Akane?"

The youngest Tendo sighed. "I don't know," she confessed. She had confided in Kasumi a little of what had happened between her and Ranma. "I had it all figured out. I ticked off the reasons why we shouldn't be together, why it would be better if we spent some time apart."

"But?"

"I ... love him," Akane whispered, warmth staining her cheeks. Admissions of affection between her and Ranma were rare, but the eldest Tendo had a quiet way of drawing out the truth. "Even when I was away I couldn't stop thinking about him."

"That doesn't change the fact that we're just too volatile together," Akane added quickly. "I mean, I look at your marriage, Kasumi. What the two of you have, that's what a marriage should be. You hardly argue, you take care of each other, you talk so easily, you'd never - " (_ask your other to kill you or spend a year torturing your spouse_) she was about to say, but couldn't.

"Akane." Kasumi's voice was gentle. She saw that her sister was on the verge of tears, and clasped the younger woman's hands. "There's no one definition of marriage. What we have suits us, but I'm not sure it would do for you or Ranma," she said truthfully.

Kasumi knew many considered her marriage ideal and in a lot of ways it was. It was a union between two people who'd spent their lives caring for others, and it was easy to add another cherished person to that circle. But adding one didn't mean that you stopped caring for the others in that circle. In Kasumi's marriage, dinners, nights out and vacation plans cancelled or rearranged at the last minute were not unusual. It might drive other people mad, but neither she nor her husband complained. They both understood how important these commitments - made before they had even met - were to each other.

Ranma and Akane were different. Theirs was a union of fighters, of natures both proud, impulsive and stubborn. You didn't need a crystal ball to predict that the marriage would be ... contentious. But it was by no means simply that.

It was ironic, Kasumi thought, that for all their shyness and the way they studiously avoided expressing affection in public, Ranma and Akane had become a romantic icon in Nerima. Anyone on the street could point them out. Present day high school students at Furinken knew who they were, and not just because some of them were students of the dojo.

Their love was the stuff of stories. What they had faced together, how they had fought side by side and nearly died for each other a dozen times over – these were well-known in Nerima. Their passion was not in their words or in public embraces, but it was evident in the way they looked at each other (particularly when the other wasn't looking), in the way they practiced martial arts together and, yes, even in the ways they disagreed.

Were Ranma and Akane even aware of how intensely their gazes locked sometimes? Kasumi doubted it. And the Tendos and the Saotomes were no longer the only ones who noticed how one instantly jumped to the other's defense.

Kasumi guessed this was why the backlash against Akane had been so harsh. Akane had unknowingly taken the starry-eyed image that people had built up about her and Ranma, and brought it crashing to the ground. People were never happy when their illusions were shattered. Kasumi herself had felt a little betrayed when she had seen how Akane treated Ranma after the accident. How could this impatient, almost cruel, young woman be her sister? Now, of course, she understood. Akane hadn't been picking on Ranma – she had been challenging him.

"I won't judge your marriage, Akane," Kasumi continued. "I've done enough judging this year and I was wrong. No, let me finish," the older woman overrode her sister's well-meaning protests. "I should've had more faith in you. I will always be sorry that I turned against you. But before you think that the situation between you and Ranma is hopeless, there's something you should know." She paused. "Ranma told everyone."

"Wh-what?" To say that Akane was stunned was putting it lightly.

"He came here one day, and made sure that I knew exactly what went on. It seems that Nabiki told him how ... angry I got with you," for the first time in ages, there was a hint of shame in Kasumi's voice, "and that the neighbors weren't even talking to you. He asked for advice on how to deal with our neighbors. Eventually, he ended up talking to Omahashi-san."

"The old lady who splashes him," Akane supplied in a dazed voice. This couldn't be. Ranma was an intensely private person. He'd never ... except that according to Kasumi, he had.

Kasumi nodded. "Only this time he stopped and asked for a towel, and she ended up inviting him in for tea. I advised him not to give all the details, but I think he told her enough." Mrs. Omahashi was a garrulous old lady who had lived in Nerima all her life, which meant she knew practically everyone. Telling her the story of the past year was practically the same as announcing it to the whole community. "So don't be surprised if the neighbors stop to talk to you. I think everyone feels a bit guilty about how they treated you."

She waited for Akane's response, but it soon became clear that her sister was still too astounded to say anything. "If you feel that things need to change between you and Ranma, then change them," Kasumi went on more firmly. "If you think going away is what's best, I won't stop you, however much I want to. But there is another way. You can work it out together. That's part of being married, too."

Akane was silent for a minute. "How ... how did he look, 'neechan?" She tried unsuccessfully to hide the concern in her voice.

"Oh he looked fine." Kasumi chose her next words with great care. "Very fit, running on the wall."

Akane's head shot up. "Running on the ... WALL!" she repeated in disbelief.

"Why yes. I believe he was. Is anything wrong, Akane?" Kasumi blinked at her sister artlessly.

"Why that, that - !" Akane was highly tempted to mutter a few choice swear words, but managed to restrain herself in light of Kasumi's condition. "He shouldn't be running on the wall! He shouldn't even **be** on the wall. It could start snowing at any time, the ice will make everything slippery. He should be walking. On the ground. Slowly!" The youngest Tendo hurriedly broke away, poured the tea and set out the cups and saucers. "If you'll excuse me, neechan, I have some things to do. I'll be back later!"

Kasumi looked bemused as the whirlwind pounded out of her kitchen. "Ah, young love," she murmured, when she was sure Akane was gone. Those two really were very sweet.

* * *

It was a GOOD day! Ranma ran, leapt over a wall, bounded onto another wall and, with barely a pause to keep his balance, began to take steps along the narrow brick. He gradually gained speed until he was doing a respectable jog - not quite his old effortless sprint - but still pretty good.

In a few minutes he was back in his own yard, but he was still too wound up to stop. He began shadow-fighting, punching and kicking at an imaginary opponent. There was no rhyme to his moves; this was no kata, just pure exuberance, seeing what he could do. He launched into a couple of roundhouse kicks. Again, a tad slow, but at least the balance was there, the control. Ranma smiled. He wondered if . . . ah, to heck with the wondering, just do it!

He somersaulted into the air. It was pure bliss, the moment his body spent suspended in the air. His body curved back like a bow and he stretched his arms out to meet the onrushing ground. Then he pushed off again, this time into a simple flip that ended with him landing on his feet.

He paused for a second, a bit out of breath. His arms were okay, but that landing was not as solid as he liked. (_Maybe I should try ..._)

"That was good."

Ranma's heart nearly stopped. Slowly, fearfully, he turned around.

Akane smiled at him uncertainly.

Ranma stared at her; he couldn't help it. There was something different about Akane, he thought, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Heck, he was never good at details like that. Like those times when Akane would complain out of the blue that she needed a haircut, and he'd just shrug and say that it looked okay. It never failed to annoy her, but what was he supposed to say? Akane was Akane. Sure, some days she looked better than others, but even on her worst days she was the girl he'd grown up with and the woman he'd married. She knew him best, and he loved her above all others.

And yet he had hurt her terribly.

Akane had gotten to the yard just in time to see the red almost-blur that was her husband bounce all over the yard. She had been about to call him when he had launched into a somersault. It had taken her breath away. She had almost forgotten how Ranma loved taking to the air ... and how much she liked watching him. In those moments, Ranma was like poetry come to life.

She cast about for something to say. "Um, why don't you cool down while I make breakfast? Nothing fancy but nothing toxic, I promise."

"I'd like that," Ranma answered simply.

Once Akane was out of sight, he went through his cool down exercises in record speed. His heart had leapt when he'd spotted Akane at Kasumi's, but not in his wildest dreams had he expected her to come so soon. (_Gotta take a shower, find a nice shirt, think about what to say. Oh kami, do NOT let me screw this up!) _

It was a good thing, the pigtailed youth reflected, that Akane was a little slow when she cooked, making sure she got things right. But not quiet. He heard her banging pans around as he ran past the kitchen - "Be right back!" - and finally allowed himself a smile. (_It's good to have her back._)

Ten minutes later, Akane watched Ranma gingerly sip the simmering bowl of miso soup she'd prepared. The young woman nearly rolled her eyes. Honestly, it had been years since her last bad meal but he still wouldn't take her food without testing it first.

Ranma, apparently decided that the soup was not only safe but actually good, flashed an appreciative smile at her. Then, predictably, the food took his full attention.

Which is why Ranma missed how flustered Akane was. Two weeks thinking about Ranma, their problems, the year that had passed - that was one thing. Actually being here, having him so near (... _if I wanted to I could just reach out and ..._), seeing him smile like that, was an entirely different matter. He was so **alive**. His very presence thrummed with energy and spirit. When he had soared earlier, Akane's heart had cheered.

Now, this person sitting across from her - doing nothing more fancy than half-slurping his soup while simultaneously scooping some rice and fish with his chopsticks - this was the Ranma she had known all her life. He was silly sometimes, arrogant and a bit of a glutton, but he could also be kind in unexpected ways. Indomitable. And he would be there for her, no matter what. He had her back.

And she would always have his ... Akane's eyes grew wide. (_You dummy, did you even_ **_think_** _that_ _you were starting to get_ _over him?_)

"What?" Ranma cocked an eye at her, the tip of his chopsticks still in his mouth.

Oh great, he had caught her staring! Now what? "Your hair's still wet." It was true. Ranma had returned from the shower with his hair hanging loose, and although he'd carelessly placed a towel over his shoulders, there were already damp patches on his shirt.

"Huh?" Ranma placed his bowl and chopsticks down.

"Let me." Before he could figure out what she was planning, Akane was standing behind him. With the ease of someone who had done the same thing dozens of times before, she tugged the towel off his shoulders and began rubbing his hair with it.

Ranma let his head fall back, his nape resting on the back of the chair. He was looking up at her, but she studiously kept her eyes on what she was doing. He got the hint after awhile and closed his eyes.

"Do you have a wide-toothed comb?" she asked after awhile.

"Nuh-uh."

She tsked in annoyance. "We just can't let your hair dry out like this! It's going to get tangled."

If he could've in his current position, Ranma would've shrugged. Man, the stuff women worried about! Hey, it was hair. When it dried, you tied or braided it and that was that. Course, he had to admit that it looked and behaved better when he followed Akane's advice.

He heard her sigh. "I guess we'll just have to make do."

And that was when he felt it – the first of several fleeting touches as Akane's fingers combed through his long black hair, the tips of her fingers brushing tentatively, and then more firmly, along his scalp. Ranma froze for the tiniest second before he bonelessly gave in to her ministrations. His head slid back further until his neck was exposed, as far as comfort would allow.

He'd almost forgotten about this. How in their first year together Akane, muttering imprecations about how he was trailing water all over the place, had caught him off-guard with an offer to dry his hair. The resulting gesture was matter-of-fact and yet somehow blatantly intimate, and, after some early self-conscious awkwardness, Ranma had simply given himself up to what became one of their rituals.

He knew what it looked like; his mother had once caught them and had expressed pleasant surprise at Akane for doing such a dutiful, wifely thing as combing out her masterful sensei-husband's hair. But Ranma knew different. The truth was he wouldn't be caught dead with anybody else in this position; it seemed too, he couldn't describe it exactly, weak? girly? Akane had once revealed that she used to do the same thing for Kasumi when they were both much younger. He would never be comfortable with anyone else doing this because in this position he felt too ... open, for lack of a better word, oddly defenseless. But not with Akane.

Time almost ceased to mean anything as the feather-light finger brushing continued. Until Ranma ruined it.

"I don't know what to say to you." The martial artist didn't know what possessed him to speak. Maybe it was the fact that his eyes were closed and that he was totally relaxed for the first time in ages. "To get you to stay, I mean."

He felt Akane freeze in mid-sweep and draw back.

He groaned in protest at the loss of contact. Then he was on his feet, but not too fast and not too close. He didn't want to spook her.

"Ranma, I ..." Akane shook her head nervously. "Can we go outside?"

Without waiting for his answer, she led the way until they found themselves sitting side by side on the steps leading to the pond and the backyard. From here, you could just make out the koi swimming in the pond. (_Just like old times._)

"How have you been doing? I mean, has Dr. Tofu ...?" Akane trailed off. She wanted him to provide the details.

"Well, I got my balance back. You saw," Ranma couldn't help smirking as he said it, replaying the somersault in his mind.

"Yup," Akane returned cheerfully, "and I also heard that you've been running on walls."

(_Uh-oh._) "Akane," he said, enunciating her name carefully, "it's no big deal ..."

Wrong move. "No big deal!" she huffed. "Are you crazy? It's w-i-n-t-e-r. Do you want to slip and fall somewhere? Baka yaro!"

"Hey!" he protested.

"I'm not going through this again. Do you hear me, Ranma! I'm not! I can't!" Suddenly she was crying, tears spilling down her cheeks. "I won't."

"Akane ..." he whispered, helpless in the face of her stark anguish. "If it's gone too far, if you - you don't ..." he stammered, and found that he couldn't continue. If she said yes now, he would lose her and how could he do that? How could he stretch out the ache that he had lived with for the last two weeks into months and years?

Akane wiped at her eyes, furious at herself for losing control. "I wish I didn't," she confessed. "This would be so much easier." She took a deep, ragged breath. "It's not working, you and I. We should –"

"No," he cut her off. The word was hard and implacable. Then, more softly, "I won't accept that. Not without trying."

He had something on his mind, she could tell. "What do you want, Ranma?" she asked curiously.

"A year."

Her reply was instantaneous, "No." She moved to get up, and would've if his hand hadn't snaked out to grasp hers.

"Hear me out. Please." When she sat down again, he continued, but this time he wasn't gazing out at the pond or the yard. He was looking straight at her. "I'm not trying to trick you this time. I said I was sorry, and I meant it. That said, I gotta make a confession. And I know it's going to make you mad."

Akane saw how hesitant, how almost fearful Ranma was. "I'm listening."

Ranma screwed his eyes shut for a moment. "I knew it was wrong," he admitted.

(_That's it?_) But Ranma had said that before, hadn't he? And when Akane remembered what he had been like after the accident, how he could barely talk and move his head, she could hardly get mad at him for that. Or at least, not any madder than she already was about the vow he had gotten her to take. "I already -"

"No, you don't understand," he cut her off softly. "I knew it was wrong **and** I saw how much it was hurting you, but I didn't stop." Ranma's voice fell to a near-whisper. "I could've lifted the vow at any time this year. I knew you wanted me to. Oh yes," he affirmed as her eyes flew to his in disbelief, "every time I sensed that you were near asking, I'd draw away or pick a fight."

Akane could hardly believe her ears. "You deliberately ...?" Her fists clenched in her lap.

"Yes. You see," he hesitated, every bit of pride in him warring with the determination to be honest, "I was afraid. I thought I'd lost everything."

"Why are you telling me this now?" she demanded, torn between tears and anger.

"Because I just found out myself." He raked one hand through his hair in discomfort. "Look, when you went away, I was alone for the first time in years. I mean, people came over but they'd quickly leave, y'know? It gave me a chance to think and to figure things out. And finally I did. It's obvious, really. I love you, Akane," he said matter-of-factly, "but everything I have, everything I am has always been tied to martial arts. So I couldn't deal with losing the Art for good. I knew that without it, I'd be nothing."

She quickly denied it. "That's not true."

"No?" He raised an eyebrow. "When our fathers engaged us, what was that based on? It wasn't because I was the son of your father's best friend, it was because I was the Heir to the Musabetsu Kakutou Ryuu." Ranma dared her to disagree with him, but saw that she wouldn't.

"And your father and mine," he continued, "clearly expected certain things - that I'd protect you, fight all challengers, carry on the School - and for all that I had to be the best. I remember having nightmares when Ryouga first learned the Shishi Houkou Dan and I lost to him," Ranma mused. "Part of it was because my ego couldn't take it, that Ryouga beat me even if technically it was just a practice match. But I also had this picture of the future, that you would all flock to him for protection and I'd be nothing, just another freeloader."

"Even me." Akane's disappointment was palpable.

He nodded. She wanted the truth from him and after everything that had happened this year, it was the least she deserved. "It took awhile for that whole I'm a martial artist, too, I can protect myself' thing to sink in. That you meant it and that you ... liked me for other reasons."

Akane looked away. "It never really mattered to me, you know, when you were weak."

"Yeah, but it mattered to me. I never want to be weak around you, Akane." He took a deep breath. "I'm not making excuses. I like being the Heir, winning fights, and I don't think I could ever stand by and watch you get hurt without doing something about it. But ... I also can't help feeling that I'm nothing without these abilities. If I can't fight, Akane, what else am I good for?"

It was too much of an echo of his first words to her after the accident. "Ranma, there are many physically challenged people in the world who've made a difference."

He nodded. Akane and Dr. Tofu had spent the first few months of Ranma's convalescence throwing strange names at him. Stephen Hawking. Christopher Reeve. Others he couldn't recall right now, some of whom had made more of a difference to the world, and shown more courage, than most people put together. "I know ... but I'm not one of them."

To his surprise, she swore and jumped up so that she was standing over him. Good! The show of temper meant he was getting through to her.

"After all this, you're saying you wouldn't even try! You're a sensei, a teacher! You think that stops just because you can't get up and show your students how a move is done? You **know** martial arts; it's in your head and your heart. You can share that with people." Akane was breathing hard and nearly shaking with indignation. "You remember that book Dr. Tofu gave you about jeet kune do? Bruce Lee wrote that book when he was paralyzed. Ranma, you're the most inventive man I know! You're irrepressible, you always find ways to adapt and to turn things to your advantage. That you just gave up, and that you asked me to kill you - dear God!"

Ranma got to his feet, too. "Akane, try to understand. At the time of the accident, I couldn't see a way out. It takes a different kind of courage to live with that condition day in and day out," he said with utter respect, "and I didn't have it."

He took a step towards her, and to his relief she didn't draw away. "But I have it now. For you, and for our family if you still want one. One year, Akane," he murmured. "Let me show you. We've been through so much already. Shouldn't we give ourselves a chance?"

"Ranma." She was wavering; he saw it, but - "Hasn't what we've been through made you question whether we should be together? It should've never gotten that far, us hurting each other day in and day out, keeping our secrets, and you having to fight Ryouga. Maybe with another person it wouldn't have."

"Or maybe another person would've bailed," Ranma reasoned. "It could've gone either way. Besides, I don't care! I'm not looking for 'another person'."

Akane looked at him fully now, and he was taken aback by the sadness in her eyes. "But maybe I am another person," she said slowly. "Ranma, this year ... changed me. I'm not the same person you married. That girl couldn't have done what I did."

To her surprise, Ranma shook his head. "Then I'd be dead," he stated simply, "or worse. I said this before: You did what you had to do. I'm not gonna kid you; there were times when I hated what you were doing, but in the end it worked. As for being the same person, well I'm not the guy you married either. When you're stuck to a chair for half a year, you get to think. That guy from four years ago? He'd be flying over walls before talking to you like this," he admitted ruefully. "Actually, flying over walls would probably be easier. This is hard work."

"Then why do it?" The question just slipped out.

Ranma actually smiled at her. "Because it's worth it." Tentatively, he moved closer to her. A tight knot in his chest loosened when she held her ground. But she still looked nervous and indecisive, so unlike the woman he knew!

"Akane," he began slowly, "I dunno bout kids or whether I'm fit to be a dad, but there is one thing I do know. I have this picture in my head sometimes, of what it'll be like when I'm old. We'll be sitting somewhere and we'll be gray and maybe a little on the slow side, and we'll still be bickering ... and I don't mind."

"Don't you see?" he asked, and this time there was a faint note of pleading in his voice. "You're the only one I've ever wanted beside me."

He was close enough to touch her. Akane watched him, fascinated. She couldn't move now if her life depended on it. What would he do now, she wondered. Would he kiss her like the last time? Unconsciously, she braced herself for it, and it tore at something in Ranma that she was standing there as if he were about to launch some kind of assault.

In that moment, Ranma got it. (_This isn't a fight._) Of course. This wasn't something he could get by pushing hard enough. Akane was uncertain, and he had to let her deal with her doubts on her own time. This part was **her** fight. What he needed to do was to step back and let her work it out. And why not? He had done it before, even stopped Ryouga from rushing to avenge Akane because he knew she wouldn't like it. There were some things that only Akane could do and decide for herself.

He had asked for a chance to show her. That was exactly what he had to do. But that didn't mean he couldn't reach out and ...

Akane was unprepared for the familiar sweetness of Ranma's strong, calloused fingers curving against her cheek.

"I missed you, Akane," he confessed in a low, roughened voice.

The plainly spoken words were her undoing. No hemming and hawing. Just simple, honest emotion. So unlike the Ranma of this past year. And she could do no less than to be just as truthful. The time for tricks and schemes between them was finally, definitely over.

Akane's hand rose up to meet her husband's, so that she could cradle the warmth of his palm against her cheek. "I missed you, too, Ranma."

"Don't cry," he said gently, as his fingers met a telltale tear. "We'll work it out, you'll see."

"Don't shut me out again." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"I promise." And finally - finally! Ranma was able to hold her again. His wife. His Akane.

**

* * *

**

**Notes:**

At last! (Do I hear echoes? Trust me, I'm about as relieved to get to this point as you are.) Many thanks to everyone who reviewed **Rekindling**! This story turned out a lot better because of your reviews. I'm still having a hard time believing it got more than 120 reviews! Wow. Special thanks to those who stuck with the story almost from the beginning – dennisud, Pinku, Cat, AkaneAlways, Shaeya, Shadow, Love3the3vil,morgannia, r.j.g., terpsichore & doc, to name a few (sorry if I missed anyone). Pinku, your last review got this chapter moving again, thank you. Readers, I hope you like this chapter.

A word on the ending. I know some of you might be disappointed by the, um, lack of fireworks. I tried, folks, but the story just got stuck. Ranma and Akane went through a traumatic year that almost split them up and no matter how I wrote it, it just didn't seem right to have them back together and acting as if nothing had happened. That kind of healing takes time, which is why I'm probably going to end up writing an epilogue set a few months after this chapter.

I can practically hear the groans. How long will that take? I'm still high from the reviews, so let me offer this as a kind of incentive: I will post the epilogue no more than 8 days after **Rekindling** reaches 150 reviews. Please note: the epilogue will be posted even if there are less than 150 reviews. The number's just there to make the process a little faster. :) Flames are not counted (since this is supposed to encourage me to write faster), and only one review per reader please. :)

Akane's recurring dream about Ranma's seppuku is just that - it's not meant to be an accurate depiction of ritual suicide.

Rough translation of Japanese words used in this fic:

Baka - fool, idiot, and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma

Kaishoku - the "second" in traditional seppuku. His/her job was to cut  
off the samurai's head before the latter "dishonored" himself by showing  
too much pain

Kimi - you (used by a husband to his wife)

Kuso - a swear word; roughly equivalent to "shit"

"Ittai koko wa doko da!" - "Where on earth am I now!" Ryouga's  
cry when he's lost and frustrated about it.

Musha-shugyo - training journey

Otousan - Father

Oyaji - a less respectful way of saying father; usually translated as  
"Pop" in the anime

Shimatta - "Damn it!"

Shoji - sliding doors, like the one at the Tendo dojo


	7. Epilogue: Warmth

Ranma and company belong to the brilliant Rumiko Takahashi, but the poor fare below is mine. C and C welcome.This is the last part of Rekindling. Here goes ...

Words in (_italics_) are thoughts. Entire paragraphs in italics are flashbacks.

**REKINDLING A FLAME **

**by: Skywatch**

**EPILOGUE: WARMTH**

Months passed before Akane realized they had a new ritual. More than one, actually.

The first usually started with a nice leisurely meal – lunch or dinner, depending on when they seemed to have more time. As they finished, one of them would stand up and offer to make tea, and that would be the signal. While they stirred their cups unhurriedly, the same person would bring up something in the most casual of tones. Just as laconically, the other would reply. Before they knew it, they would be deep in earnest conversation.

It didn't happen all the time. Sometimes a week would go by, which is why it took Akane awhile to figure it out. What surprised her was that Ranma started these impromptu talks about as often as she did. It wasn't always serious, but at times stuff came out that was ... intensely personal. Certainly Akane had found herself impulsively sharing a few things that she had never thought to tell anyone.

And they finally talked more about the vow.

"It was my last card, my way out if things got too hard," Ranma eventually explained. "Of course I knew you didn't want me to commit seppuku. You were pretty mad about it. But I couldn't let it go."

"But you were getting better." Akane fought hard to keep her tone even. The need to understand this was much greater than the urge to pick a fight and call him all sorts of names for even coming up with that heinous idea.

"It took me six months just to take a step," he reminded her. "That's a hundred eighty days of being stuck to a chair, of being carried everywhere, or falling off and crawling or ..." For a moment, the ghost of the despair she had heard before crept back into his voice. "**Me**, Akane, the guy who ran like the wind, who could leap over roofs and walls, who hated being weak."

"And when you were getting better?" she persisted.

Ranma stirred his tea. "There was a day in the dojo ..."

Akane colored and sipped her tea to cover it.

"We were doing a kata and I smashed a pile of bricks." He glanced at her. "You remember?"

Oh, that day. She cleared her throat and nodded.

"I felt ready to give it up then. I was about to mention it when Ryouga busted in. Then there was that whole challenge thing and afterwards everything happened too fast. But from that day on - heck, from the day I was really able to stand on my own and walk, I knew I wasn't going to ask you to go through with it."

There was a moment of quiet.

"Would've been nice to know it at the time," Akane declared evenly after a long, tense pause.

Ranma tugged at his pigtail. "Yeah, I know. I honestly thought you sensed how I felt. I'm sorry."

That was the day they started to put the past year behind them. Not that it was something they were going to forget, but from then on Akane knew that they would be looking forward more than back. They were going to live their lives again.

The second development, well, that wasn't so unexpected. After the classes that were now back to being taught jointly at the dojo, Ranma would nonchalantly invite her to spar. Then he'd try to beat her. Of course.

She had to hand it to him. He was getting better everyday. She still beat him but it was no longer easy; she had to watch out constantly. She knew that it was just a matter of time. Soon Ranma would see an opening and take it.

Akane grinned. She was actually looking forward to it. Not that she'd let him win, nor simply let him keep winning after that. When it came to martial arts, neither of them went easy on the other. Ranma had certainly never let her win when he had been her superior in the Art. Hold back enough to train her, eventually, yes. But win? No, that stuff had to be earned. Then it felt that much sweeter when you succeeded. Akane still remembered the rush she'd felt the first time she'd landed a blow on her surprised iinazuke. She wouldn't deny Ranma that feeling for anything.

As for the most recent, and definitely most confusing, ah ... ritual, she supposed you could call it, that had started a few nights ago.

They were still sleeping in different bedrooms, she in her old room while Ranma, for some reason, had moved to the guest room, where he used to stay with his dad. One Sunday night, about four months after she'd come back, Akane had drowsily announced that she was going to bed.

"Yeah, I guess I should, too," Ranma had said, getting up. He'd followed her up the stairs until they were standing outside her door.

Akane turned to say goodnight, and suddenly she became aware of how close to her Ranma was standing, how she could see the irises of his eyes, wide and stormy as they locked onto hers. Afterwards, she couldn't tell who moved first. She remembered raising her head, and Ranma sweeping down towards her.

She didn't know what to expect. Since the accident, the few encounters between her and Ranma tended to be sudden outbursts of pent-up feeling. If she had to guess, she supposed that this would be more of the same.

Instead it was like ... oh, a warm summer evening compared to an afternoon of thunderstorms. It was sweet and almost languorous, this meeting, the way their breaths mingled for an instant before their lips closed and nuzzled, went apart and unhurriedly joined again. As if they had all the time in the world. It **felt** like a first kiss, Akane realized, except it wasn't in the least bit awkward.

Then, just as she was considering moving things forward, Ranma slowly pulled away. "Good night, Akane," he said softly.

"Good night," she returned automatically, still a bit lightheaded. She stepped into her room, closed the door, and leaned against it for a moment.

(_What in the blue bloody blazes was that!_)

The kiss she could understand. As a matter of fact, considering how volatile Ranma and she were, Akane was surprised something like it hadn't happened sooner. But what was this "good night" stuff? Why did Ranma step away?

The next day brought no answers. Nor the one after that. By that time, Akane was thoroughly confused.

On each night, they would stop outside her door. Then the kisses would start, slow and tender.

But things were starting to escalate. Every night they found themselves going a bit further. On the fourth night, lips and tongues tangled, then trailed. There was a sensitive spot under Akane's ear that her husband re-discovered and laved with attention. There was a particularly responsive point at the hollow of Ranma's throat that his wife boldly probed until he groaned.

The next day, they met their visiting families in turtleneck sweaters. The Tendos and Saotomes were so happy to see them getting along that they got away with only one caustic remark from Nabiki and a knowing look from Kasumi, of all people.

On the fifth night, they didn't even make it upstairs. They were cuddled on the couch. The movie they had been watching had long since ended, and Ranma's hands were caressing his wife's arms through the thin sleeves of her pajamas. They pulled her closer until she could feel the warmth rising off of his body and the strong pulse of his heart underneath the cotton undershirt.

"Akane." He couldn't say anything beyond her name. He could so easily get lost in the way she felt against him, the scent of her hair as it swept against him, the soft firmness that was her and no other.

Akane, meantime, was reacquainting him with the slow burn of her touch, the particular way her fingers traced the lines of his body through his shirt. She felt Ranma shiver as she nibbled at his lower lip, then their lips were sliding together hungrily again.

Just at the point when they were starting to sink into the couch, she felt Ranma pause. Akane was sure he was on the verge of saying goodnight again.

She wanted to strangle him. Well, okay, maybe that wasn't **exactly** what she wanted, but it was getting to be a close second.

So she did the only thing she could. She beat him to it. "Wait." When they were both sitting up again, she asked outright, "Ranma, what's going on?"

They were making out like teenagers, which was funny considering that they had never really made out like this when they **were** teenagers. They had lived with her family then, forcibly engaged, with everybody's eyes on them. Making out would've meant instant marriage. Privately, Akane thought it the best antidote to teenage hormones ever invented.

For a second, she thought he would pretend that he didn't know what she meant. Then he sighed. "Want some tea?" He looked positively grim.

Worried now, she followed him into the kitchen. She sat at the table while Ranma efficiently and silently heated water and went about his preparations. He poured them each a cup when everything was ready, but remained standing, cradling the cup in his hands.

"Do you remember that day in the dojo?" For a second his hesitant words sounded like déjà vu, and Akane was confused, wondering what this had to do with the time he'd broken those bricks. Then she noticed the red tinge on his cheeks.

Oh, **that** day. Finally. Akane felt the heat rushing to her own cheeks. "I thought you'd forgotten about it," she admitted.

The look he threw her basically said she was crazy. He muttered her name and something about being a baka.

"Well, what was I supposed to think?" she huffed, suddenly annoyed. "You never mentioned it again. And your reaction at the time ... the way you looked at me, and then you said it was a mistake!"

"Because it was!" This time Ranma was facing her, and he saw the stricken expression on her face. "No, not like that! Akane," and his voice hushed, "if I live to be a hundred I'll never forget it. But what happened that day, I just ... I practically attacked you! I took you on the floor! I tore your -"

"Stop." Kami, the mental pictures! (_If I blush anymore, my head will explode._) Akane momentarily buried her face in her hands. "Exactly what do you think happened that day, Ranma?"

He bent his head. "You didn't like it," he whispered.

"What!" she exclaimed. "Where did you get that idea?"

"You cried." His voice dropped until it was barely audible. "You woke up, and you cried."

Akane remembered. "Yes, but only after you ... you wouldn't talk, you didn't smile or say anything. We had just shared something and you- you shut down again." Too restive now to even pretend to be drinking tea, she got up. She walked up to the pigtailed martial artist, and took the cup from his nerveless hands. She was still blushing like crazy, but now it was because of what she was about to do. (_I can't believe I'm going to say this._)

But it had to be said. "I'll be the first to admit I wouldn't want it to be like that all the time," she confessed shyly. "I like the way we take things ... slow." Her eyes closed, and this time there were other, older images.

Ranma, with his hair unbound, his hands and mouth determinedly moving over her even as his breathing grew ragged. Akane, her skin flushed all over as she teased and caressed and tempted. Long endless moments of getting to the brink and then backing off, just so they could build up to it again. Yes, they pushed themselves even in that, tested each other's control and endurance until one or the other or both finally, gloriously succumbed. Afterwards, they would lie exhausted in each other's arms and exchange rueful grins, each secure in the knowledge that only one person in their lives would ever witness this kind of abandon from them.

"But on that particular day ... Ranma, it felt right. I don't know how else to put it, but I don't regret it. Maybe one day, it'll feel right again." Akane tried to be as candid as possible, even if her face felt like it was going toimplode from a high wattage blush.

Ranma was silent for a moment, absorbing what she said. Then he simply opened his arms, and Akane went into their circle willingly. He embraced her and kissed the top of her head. "I'd like to re-learn slow," he asserted. "I'm not up to it yet but ... soon."

"Is that what this is about?"

He grinned. "It's training."

Akane nearly groaned. Why did she have to end up with a guy who applied the Art to practically everything in his life? She wondered how long she'd last. (_He's going to be the death of me._)

Ranma cleared his throat. "I guess that just leaves one thing."

"Hmm?"

He swallowed. "I want to make it up to you."

She didn't understand. "It?"

"The vow."

Akane nearly choked. The warm fuzzy feeling evaporated. It was the last thing she wanted to dwell on right now. "Ranma, just let it go. You did things; I did things. We made our apologies. It's not like we can go back and set is straight."

"There is a way."

"How?"

Ranma had been thinking about this for awhile. It would be perfect – it would allow him to let go of his guilt, and it would make them even. He hesitated only because it was a scary thing … and because once he did it there would be no going back. He couldn't see her not accepting. "Make me promise, Akane. Blindly, like you did."

It took her a few seconds to answer, because, to her shame, Ranma's offer actually tempted her. As payback it would be perfect, but more importantly, it would anchor her, remove all her doubts about them once and for all. But why was that? She would take Ranma's word any day; she had faith in any promise he made. But what was the difference, she thought dazedly, between trusting Ranma's word and trusting Ranma himself?

She stepped away and looked at him. He wasn't looking at her. He kept his eyes averted and there was a tight, nervous cast to his face.

At that moment, Akane realized that she could read Ranma again, that he was no longer the mystery to her that he had been after the accident. And whether that was because she was no longer looking at him through the veil of the death-oath he had made her take, or because Ranma wasn't shutting himself off from her anymore, she couldn't really tell. Or maybe she was just imagining things.

"What kind of promise?" she asked, as if she were considering it.

He swallowed again. "Anything."

So she was right. It was fear, or at least, trepidation. He was offering to put himself completely in her hands, and he had no idea what she would do now. Akane realized that she hated it. From the beginning, she and Ranma had wanted nothing more than to be able to make their own choices. This past year, they had done so many things because they were forced to. For the first time in months, her words seethed with pure anger. "Don't ever ask me to do this again."

His gaze leveled with hers. "Akane?" There was a wondering tone in his voice.

Suddenly she was the one who couldn't face him. She whirled around towards the open shoji. She crossed her arms and stared out, not really seeing the pond and the yard, her gaze focused inward. "Don't tempt me!" she said harshly. Again, she regretted the loss of the person she used to be. That girl wouldn't have thought twice and refused outright.

It was as if a heavy burden had lifted off of Ranma. (_I'm never going to understand her._) And that was just fine. He had honestly thought she couldn't turn this down. Surely the girl he'd met when he was sixteen wouldn't have. But then, he wouldn't have let that girl have this kind of sway over him. This woman before him now, though. He trusted her so much that he could dare this and had, without much qualm.

Ranma came up behind his wife and hesitantly encircled her in his arms. "Hey," he started, before he realized she was trembling. "Akane?" His voice was full of concern. "It was a dumb idea, wasn't it?"

"No, I –" She was beginning to realize that he wouldn't have offered this kind of thing lightly, not Ranma. Not anyone she knew, for that matter. "I understand why, it's just that ..." How to explain it, and not make him feel more guilty than he alreadyobviously was? Because of him, she had lived for almost a year under a vow that had been forced on her. She actually knew what it was like. It had done things to her, changed her in ways she was still trying to deal with. She didn't want that for him. The accident had done enough. She sighed. "Make your own promises, okay? Make them because **you** want to."

She meant that he should one day, when he was ready. She was surprised when he said, "Alright." .

He began softly. "I promise, Akane, that I will never give up on us again. So long as you want me, I'll be here. And if one day we decide, well ... for as long as the need me, our kids will have their father." It was, he guessed, more or less what she would've made him promise if she'd taken up his offer. Only now that he'd made it, he realized that he **wanted** to make this kind of commitment. He wanted to be there for her. In the past year, she had gotten this look in her eyes that said she was uncertain of him, of them, and he wanted to get rid of it once and for all. He was Akane's. It was high time he let her know that. It was that simple.

His words left her speechless for awhile. Then, in a voice that was barely above a whisper, "Ranma, do you ... want to have children?"

Oh kami. (_A child. Mine and Akane's._) Just the thought of it filled him with a strange sense of exhilaration. "Yes," he answered, and there was plainly awe in his voice at the thought. "Just uh, not right away?" he added, hoping she wouldn't take offense. He wanted things more settled between them first.

He felt her nod. Ranma sighed in relief. "Are we ... alright now, Akane?" he couldn't resist asking. "You're staying?"

"Ranma." She turned in his arms, and she felt him relax as she placed her own arms around him. After his promise, she had no qualms about telling him the absolute truth. "I don't think I can leave you." She was his, had been for a long time now, and it was time to let him know.

He hugged her tighter. "Guess you always knew we were going to be okay, huh?" he teased.

She shook her head. "No, I didn't." She took a deep breath. "I was serious about the musha-shugyo, Ranma. The day I left, I got a one-way ticket to Osaka."

For a moment, he was speechless. Then, casual-like, he replied, "Oh well we gotta have that changed. Ticket for two, round trip. Somewhere relaxing this time."

"Where? The beach?" she laughed at the preposterous idea, but there were tears in her eyes.

"Are you kidding? I was thinking more along the lines of hot springs. There's this place I heard about, it's supposed to be therapeutic but Tofu says its a romantic place, too. I thought, y'know, since we didn't properly celebrate our anniversary ..."

"I'd like that." Suddenly it all washed over her and it was too much. She sobbed, holding him to her as tightly as she could, feeling the strong familiar beat of his heart under her cheek. "Oh God, Ranma, I'm sorry. What I put you through!"

"What we both put ourselves through," he corrected gruffly. "I'm sorry, too, Akane. And well, if on this trip you want to talk more about, um, children -"

She heard something else in his voice, a tremor that hadn't been there before. Suspicious, she tipped her head up to look at him. Akane raised her hand to his wet cheek, and kissed him.

This time she was sure. Things were going to be okay.

* * *

And here it ends. This took much longer than I thought it would. My thanks to the people who read and reviewed Rekindling. Couldn't have done it without your encouragement, and this is a much better story because of yourcomments and critique. I'd especially like to thank the readers who stuck with the story from the beginning (_Cat_, I hope the epilogue answers some of your questions – I think yours was the longest review I've ever had and it looks like you didn't even finish), and those who posted beyond 150 reviews. As to those who got teary-eyed or who actually cried while reading Rekindling ... actually, I'm so touched I don't know what to say, beyond "thank you." 

You know, I honestly had my doubts that the reviews would reach 150. At the least I was expecting that it would take a good long time. Thank you for proving me wrong. As promised, here's the epilogue. It's a bit rough and long for an epilogue, but somehow I didn't think you'd mind.

For those who think Ranma & Akane are acting OOC, please remember that this is years into the future. Oh, and the fact that Ranma beat Ryouga in "Conflagration" but still loses to Akane here does not mean that Akane is better than Ryouga. Ranma improvised a lot to defeat Ryouga. He's not going to go to the same lengths with Akane, since these are just sparring sessions. Also, Ranma and Akane are using these straight-up fights to gauge Ranma's progress.

That's all, folks! If you would, please review. Reviews really make my day. :)

Rough translation of Japanese words used in this fic:

Baka - fool, idiot, and the like. Term Akane uses to insult Ranma

Baka yaro - roughly, "you jerk/fool!"

Kaishoku- the "second" in traditional seppuku. His/her job was to cut off the samurai's head before the latter "dishonored" himself by showing too much pain

Kimi - you (used by a husband to his wife)

Kuso - a swear word; roughly equivalent to "shit"

"Ittai koko wa doko da!" - "Where on earth am I now!" Ryouga's cry when he's lost and frustrated about it.

Musha-shugyo - training journey

Otousan - Father

Oyaji - a less respectful way of saying father; usually translated as "Pop" in the anime

Shimatta - "Damn it!"

Shoji - sliding doors, like the one at the Tendo dojo

Yamero! - "Enough!" or "Stop (it)!"


End file.
